Te Kete o Karaitiana Taiuru (Blog)

This is brief opinion piece uses traditional knowledge to show Māori Data, Māori Data Sovereignty and Māori Data Governance has existed since pre colonisation. The origins are found in mātauranga Māori (traditional knowledge) and in the natural and physical landscapes all over New Zealand and the Pacific.

Māori Data is a living Taonga such as moemoea, karakia, whakatauki; it is an intergenerational format. Professor Taiarahia Black. 

Māori have always had our ways of protecting, storing and disseminating our data under the same values we apply to all of our society, that it is always for collective well being, spiritual, environmental, societal, past, present and for our future descendants.

We now apply these values to digital data practices; from what is the research purpose, to the data, research gathering practices, analysis and deployment. We recognise a multi participant practice, whether that is stakeholders or those in the eco system to be included in each stage of this data ‘life cycle’.

Māori epistemologies speak of Māori Data originating from the deity called Rehua (Son of Ranginui and Papatūānuku) who resided in the uppermost spirit world. Rehua sent his trusted messenger the now extinct Huia bird (Heteralocha acutirostris) down to earth (Papatūānuku) to see his brother Tāne Māhuta with a message to visit Rehua to gain all of the world’s knowledge that was contained in three baskets.

Hence, this is the very first time we are introduced to Māori Data. At this time, the first Māori hacker Whiro is introduced to our knowledge systems, and we are taught lessons to protect Māori Data from people we don’t trust (the first Māori Data Sovereignty lesson).

Our historical narratives introduce stories and knowledge of the introduction of Māori Data that was brought to New Zealand on the multiple migrations of waka with knowledge experts who were responsible for bringing knowledge/Data from the various islands to New Zealand and those were able to interact with the environment. It was these kaitiaki of knowledge and Data who applied and grew new Data here in New Zealand.

Sovereignty

Māori never ceded sovereignty to the Crown. Waitangi Tribunal

Māori Data Sovereignty refers to the inherent rights and interests that Māori have in relation to the collection, ownership, and application of Māori data.

Iwi, hapū, whānau, knowledge groups, societal hierarchical groups have always and still do have full sovereignty of their own Data.

Kaitiaki of Data were a part of, and still are a part of all aspects of precolonial society. Slaves held knowledge of their own tribes and in capture would have had knowledge that was not likely shared with chiefs such as how to collect water, cooking of food etc. Other well-known kaitiaki (protectors) of Data were tohunga in the various areas such as: gardeners, carvers, kai kōrero, kai karanga, builders, navigators, astronomers, arts.

Before digital data, Māori data was passed down through generations (of families, groups, clans and tribes) via numerous oral forms, geographic features, in physical art and within carvings on houses, stone, wood and tattoos, in carvings, waiata, haka, moko, pepeha, whakataukī, genetics, intergenerational stories, knowledge of the natural world.

Colonialism took control of most of our lands and natural resources and assimilated much of the knowledge in our data despite New Zealand having two constitutional documents He Whakaputanga (1835) and Te Tiriti o Waitangi (1840) re confirming Māori had sovereignty and ensuring partnerships with the British. Despite that, colonialism took control of most of our lands and natural resources and assimilated much of the knowledge in our data. It wasn’t until 1975 that new legislation recognised Te Tiriti.

One of the rights afforded to Māori was that all items of importance (taonga), Māori would have full authority of. Māori have always stated that Māori Data is a Taonga and of significant value, as is data from a western perspective, though the New Zealand government thought otherwise.

Successive New Zealand governments refused to admit Māori had sovereignty of their own data. Then in 2021, the statutory Waitangi Tribunal heard a claim by Māori that Data is a Taonga, in the Wai-2522 claim The Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement (TPPA). The Tribunal agreed with Māori claimants and stated that Māori Data is a Taonga, reinforcing to Māori, that Māori have sovereignty of Māori Data. The decision also used the modern Māori Data Sovereignty principles and definition of Māori Data. The New Zealand Government has an obligation to now acknowledge this now.

Conclusion

The issue Māori now face, is that the government and academia want Māori knowledge Data transferred from the sovereignty that Māori have always had, directly to government and internationally owned Data centres where all sovereignty is lost as is with most of our other digital data. This occurs in many forms such as grant applications that contain a “Vision Mātauranga” clause or when we share Data with companies, academia and government.

 

NOTES:

1. Disclaimer: This story and names will vary slightly according to various tribal and hapū accounts.
2. ReMāorification is a term coined by the late Dr Moana Jackson for Māori to use instead of Indigenisation. Details here. 
3. Sections from a Māori Data expert group for the The Alan Turing Institute are included and expanded upon in this piece.