The launch of 'Tupeka Kore: The Whakapapa of Māori Tobacco Control' at Wainuomata Marae in Lower Hutt. Photo: RNZ / Pokere Paewai
A new documentary has been launched tracing the history of Māori tobacco control, beginning with Captain Cook's arrival all the way up to the repeal of Aotearoa's world-leading smokefree laws.
Tupeka Kore: The Whakapapa of Māori Tobacco Control in Aotearoa NZ was launched at Wainuiomata Marae, Lower Hutt on Friday by Te Roopu Tupeka Kore, the Māori Tobacco Control network as part of World Smokefree Day on Saturday.
Advocates said while 2025 marked the target for a smokefree Aotearoa, Māori continued to face higher rates of nicotine addiction than non-Māori.
Co-director Catherine Manning (Ngāti Raukawa ki te Tonga, Ngāti Tukorehe) called the documentary "accidental", because it started out as an educational resource for new people working in tobacco control.
Documentary co-director Catherine Manning. Photo: RNZ / Pokere Paewai
On the recommendation of Manning's co-director Paul Dodge, the team decided to make it into a fully fledged documentary.
"When we put together this documentary together the intention was to authentically make sure our truth was there. There are many people along the way that have told our story that aren't us, this is our story told by us," she said.
Manning said the tobacco industry had been very influential in the political arena in New Zealand while Māori voices often went unheard.
"Everybody else had a say, meaning the general public, successive governments had a say as to what was good for us and why it is that we are so afflicted by this product that is designed to kill. When you have an industry who has millions of dollars, an unlimited amount of resources, then we are powerless, in some parts, to stop the influence they [had] on those past generations and future generations."
Manning paid tribute to many of the Māori leaders who led tobacco control efforts who have now passed, particularly Dame Tariana Turia, Dame June Mariu and Dame Ngāneko Minhinnick.
Longtime tobacco control campaigner Shane Bradbrook (Ngāi Tamanuhiri, Rongowhakaata, Ngāti Kahungunu) was one of the people interviewed for the doco. He said it was the culmination of 20 years of his work in the sector.
Tobacco control campaigner Shane Bradbrook. Photo: RNZ / Pokere Paewai
"Tobacco was impacting on our whakapapa, killing our people far too early. And it evolved into that position of recognising that it wasn't just an individual issue and addiction that actually the kamupene (companies) that were running it, the tobacco companies were there and impinging on our whakapapa as well.
"Don't blame our people, blame the industry. The tobacco industry is to blame. And the same thing with vaping, blame them, they're the ones hooking our people."
Bradbrook said tobacco was imposing on Māori sovereignty and had no place in Māori communities.
Te Aute College student Pōtatau Clark (Rongomaiwahine) was one of the rangatahi (young people) involved with the documentary. He said it was overwhelming to see his face up on the big screen for the first time.
Rangatahi Pōtatau Clark. Photo: RNZ / Pokere Paewai
He never thought he would be involved in anything like this, but decided to speak out after going through his own experiences with vaping in intermediate school.
"I felt the guilt ... thinking to myself, 'I just did something that my Nan fights against.' So I thought I'd take a step forwards, let people know why I think it's harmful and why us Māori and rangatahi shouldn't do it."
Clark said right now young Māori were facing a "vaping tsunami".
"Walking through the school bathrooms and seeing vape clouds, it's just not a good sight to see as a rangatahi who is trying to prevent those things from happening," he said.
Green MP Hūhana Lyndon attended Friday's launch as a longtime kaimahi (worker) in tobacco control prior to entering Parliament.
"[The documentary] was very heartfelt. It reflected on all of the things that we needed to remember as a country and as being world leaders in smokefree. And Tupeka Kore is our Māori solution."
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