Māori health advocates say the government needs to provide more help for people in Aotearoa living with HIV.
The government has set a goal to have zero local transmissions of the disease by 2030 and believes the best approach to this is through hauroa Māori initiatives.
Patient advocate and Toitū Te Ao chief executive Milly Stewart says hauora Māori may be the answer to alarming statistics for HIV.
“I’m going to say Māori are not looking in a good space at the moment. Why I say that is because there is only one Māori organisation that serves the whole of Aotearoa with its capacity not as big as other organisations.”
Sunday saw World Aids Day being acknowledged across the world. However, its precursor, HIV, is spreading across Māori.
Toitū Te Ao was founded in 2020 aimed at ‘uplifting the dignity of Māori with HIV.’
However, according to Otago University annual data, despite Māori and Pacific peoples only making up 15% of HIV patients, they are more likely to be diagnosed late and have advanced infection. Stewart says hauora Māori isn’t solely focused on the body.
“Ko te hinengaro, te wairua, te whatumanawa, ērā āhuatanga e whakapā mai i ō tātou mātua tīpuna kei runga i a mātou. Kia ora ai ērā āhuatanga, e ora ai tātou katoa.”
“It is mind, spirit and soul all of those factors that were inherited from our ancestors. If those factors are supported we will feel supported.”
A recent Ngā Taipakeke o te Urutā HIV Ageing with HIV report found the proportion of Kiwis living with HIV who are aged 50+ is expected to rise from 61% to 72% by 2030. Stewart says government support is desperately needed.
“We’re definitely out to advocate on behalf of the sector, on behalf of Māori, that we need government on side and we need them to honour our HIV action plan. We need them to honour the Treaty of Waitangi. Toitū te tiriti, toitū te mana, toitū te ao.”
Another finding in the report showed that ‘poapoataunutanga, the impact of stigma and discrimination, is widespread, with 60% of respondents having experienced homophobia and 50% having experienced HIV stigma. The internalised stigma can lead to feelings of shame, fear of disclosure, isolation, and despair and over 80% of respondents spoke of themselves in a stigmatised way.’
Stewart encourages whānau to, despite the embarrassment some may have about a potential illness, get checked.