Towards a values-based transformation movement for Māori advancement: the case for spiritual, ethical and moral imperatives within Māori transformational movements

Abstract

This work debates the proposition that current ideas for transforming Māori social conditions mostly neglect to engage with a moral dimension, and therefore fail consistently to achieve expected results. Although there have been improvements and growth, the gap in education achievement, health status and economic conditions, between Māori and the descendants of the colonists, has continued to grow. Māori explanations for such gaps regularly diminish and ignore the moral, ethical and spiritual elements foundational in Māori cultural life, in favour of more popular political explanations. Without disregarding important political components, this thesis attempts to add value to existing transformative frameworks by arguing for the inclusion of Māori-sourced interpretations of spirit, morals and ethics (Kaupapa Wairua Māori) in debates about Māori deprivation. I hope that this inclusion will bolster both the existing ‘change strategies’ and the intended outcomes to enable positive and continual Māori advancement in the future. Colonial hegemony in its various forms is challenged, not solely within the traditional frames of a reactive critique, but also through proactively arguing that Māori as a nation ought to be self-determining in pursuing a more principled existence and approach. It is argued that this will enable more honest and ‘excellent’ outcomes and an improvement in the social and economic conditions of a disproportionately high number of Māori.