Tariana Turia: Tribunal report points to shared future

I had the privilege of being at Roma Marae in Ahipara, to witness the historic presentation of the Waitangi Tribunal's report, Ko Aotearoa Tenei, back to descendants of the original claimants.
The claim, commonly referred to as WAI 262, is about the place of Maori culture, identity and traditional knowledge in our laws, policies and practices.
Its scope was expansive, and to do justice to its vision, the Tribunal recommends reform relating to health, education, science, intellectual property, indigenous flora and fauna, resource management, conservation, the Maori language, arts and culture, heritage, and the involvement of Maori in international instruments affecting indigenous rights. And if that sounds like the world - well, that's probably about right.
Consistently running throughout the report was the theme: culture counts. The claimants questioned who controls Maori traditional knowledge; and how is that aligned with the promise of the Treaty that Maori retain tino rangatiratanga (full authority) over our taonga (treasures).
It is a stunning exposition of a universal truth - we are not all the same; one size does not fit all.
Mana whenua - literally the people of this land - hold true to our responsibilities as tangata tiaki. We see ourselves as the cultural guardians of taonga associated with our iwi and hapu. These kaitiaki obligations are central to the survival of Maori culture.
And so it matters when we see our haka being misappropriated by others who share no understanding of its origins. It matters when we see our culture marginalised; when Maori artistic and cultural works are exploited for commercial gain without input or consent from the iwi or hapu from which they originate. It matters when our treasured plants or animal species are treated with less than the respect they deserve.
Perhaps the two most vivid settings in which we see culture count are in education and health environments.
All of the research tells us that the stronger students' cultural identity and the higher their resilience, the more likely it is that they will be successful academically. And in health settings, we know that it is all about how you talk to people, and how you relate to them, that means health messages will be taken on board successfully.
There will be many issues raised in the media and in the House, as a response to the WAI 262 report. The report challenges all of us to think about the way in which we treat taonga; the status of indigenous culture; the broader issues around cultural and intellectual property rights.
Labelling the report "contentious", as Morning Report did, was hardly helpful to setting a stage for an open discussion; and of course Don Brash's negative reaction - looking only at what could be dismissed or denied is far from useful.
The report provides with the greatest opportunity to move forward, to consider how best we can make good of the Treaty promise by taking up a genuine commitment to the relationship between Crown and tangata whenua.
In effect, WAI 262 leads us in the direction of cultural competency. It is all about being able to have the conversation; to form a relationship of understanding, rather than talking past one another.
We owe it to our economy; we owe it to our strength as communities; and we owe it to our future to be forward looking and pave a way ahead.