3. What the Commission did
Ua tuhituhi mai kae omai ke gahua auloa –
Stop pointing, come and work together.
Niuean Proverb
As the Inquiry was concerned with the
experiences of Pacific peoples, it was important
that the Commission approached this work in an
appropriate way. We undertook our Inquiry using
both a human rights and culturally specific panPacific approach.
It included six Pacific leaders representing the
health sector, the business community and
unions as well as MBIE and the Ministry for
Pacific Peoples. There was an additional nonPacific member representing the manufacturing
sector.
Our first step was to establish a reference
group to guide and support the Inquiry. The
reference group was made up of leaders who
have expertise in the areas of the Inquiry from
both the private and public sector.
The reference group initially met on a monthly
basis to advise on the development of the Inquiry
plan and to assist in promoting awareness of the
Inquiry among the Pacific community. In addition,
the reference group promoted participation in
the Inquiry by employers.
Voices of Pacific peoples
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