KEY POINTS:
A special police convoy carrying Maori elders is this morning spraying 10,000 litres of Waikato River water on State Highways One and Two in a bid to free the spirits of fatal accident victims.
The ceremonial spraying will be interrupted at two key points in the journey - first at Mercer so a karakia, or prayer, can be performed for the dead. The convoy, which will include iwi, police, Transit and roading contractor Fulton Hogan, will stop again at Maramarua for a second karakia.
The combination of the blessed water and the prayers is considered the trigger for the release of the spirits - or wairua - who were trapped by violent deaths on the roads.
But it has brought frustration from local MP Judith Collins, who says police need to focus on fighting crime in Counties Manukau and leave tapu lifting to others.
"I don't know why the police are involved," she said.
Counties Manukau policing development manager Inspector Jason Everett said the initiative came after a request by a member of its Maori advisory group.
"One of our kaumatua suggested to us that there had been so many fatal accidents on these stretches of highway it would be a very good idea to bless the highway. In Maori culture, they believe that when someone is killed in such circumstances their wairua or spirit can't move on until the tapu is lifted."
The process began yesterday morning with the water pumped from the Waikato River at Tuakau by the New Zealand Fire Service into a tanker.
"They will put down a very fine spray and they will drive the length of the highway.
"We anticipate there will be very little disruption to anyone. They are going to travel at a steady 80km/h. It's a very quiet time on a Sunday. It should pass without incident."
Kaumatua Sonny Rauwhero from Tainui said: "This river is an ancestral river in an area where many people have passed away. We thought we should use this water because of this, so hopefully it will work out well."
Sergeant Richard Waihi of the Otahuhu police said: "There are a lot of people who believe in this and believe it is a good thing even though some are completely against it. It's not a religious thing, despite what some people think, it's a Maori belief and it's never been done before on this scale."
Waihi said tapu lifting on roads had been done only twice previously; once for a suicide victim in East Tamaki and another for a fatal motorbike accident in Bombay.
"It's pretty deep rooted in Maori culture this notion that the wairua or spirit can't be free to move on until the tapu is lifted," he said.
"With the sheer number of fatal accidents that have happened across the years down these particular stretches of highway, in their culture they believe there are likely to be quite a number of wairua that need to move on."
Everett said there was no cost to police aside from time.
Collins, who is MP for Clevedon, said she was concerned police focus had strayed from fighting crime. She has a private members' bill before the law and order select committee calling for more police in Counties Manukau. She said: "There is one police officer for every 1400 residents. The rest of the country has one officer for 500 residents."
