Mötika Tangata më Te Tiriti o Waitangi: Mate Korona më te Noho Rähui i Aotearoa Taumata 4 Looking forward towards recovery Honouring Tiriti and human rights commitments is vital to ensure an effective response to COVID-19 and to prevent the erosion of trust and confidence within Crown-Mäori relationships. Building on positive examples, the government and Mäori should strengthen mechanisms to support partnership decision-making that affirms the käwanatanga of government and rangatiratanga of hapü, iwi and Mäori. Partnership should go beyond engagement and encompass meaningful, equitable, shared decisionmaking. Where Mäori rights are significantly affected, for example by restrictions on tikanga Mäori, the obligation of free, prior and informed consent should be applied and rangatiratanga upheld. Government must work with Tiriti partners on all COVID-19 issues, including changes to alert levels. Some iwi and hapü have expressed concerns about lowering alert levels and may wish to maintain higher levels of regional protection. Where käwanatanga and rangatiratanga views diverge, there should be negotiations with a view to reaching agreement in line with the human rights obligation of free, prior and informed consent. A deliberate and structured approach may help to ensure coordination between the two co-existing systems and also provide a forum for negotiating agreement on more difficult questions. There needs to be a greater focus on advancing Tiriti-based equity for Mäori including strengthening the Ministry of Health’s Mäori Response Action Plan. Alongside the risk of COVID-19, Mäori communities will be burdened with untreated and undiagnosed conditions and unmet needs that are likely to have worsened during the Level 4 lockdown. It is crucial that the vulnerabilities of Mäori are given a high priority across the health system. Robust data collection and analysis will be critical. Overall, a well-coordinated COVID-19 strategy, grounded in Te Tiriti and human rights, is required across all government agencies and sectors. Finally, it appears that there were significant gaps in the long-term pandemic planning of successive New Zealand governments. As we move into Alert Level 3 and towards recovery, we urge the government to ensure that the lessons from this pandemic are documented for future planning and implementation based on Te Tiriti. 9