Dame Tariana deserves honour

Anna Wallis PHOTO/FILE

I don't agree with the honours system.

As a republican, it seems like a throwback to a system unworthy of a forward-looking, democratic country. And too often people are honoured for just doing their job and too few people are honoured for their work as volunteers. When was the last time a captain of charity was given a major award as opposed to a captain of industry.

But that is a churlish way of beginning congratulations to Tariana Turia for her making the New Year's Honours List.

I suppose being an MP could broadly be described as a job but it is always much more than that and Dame Tariana's honour is for much more than a job.

She caused a seismic shift in New Zealand politics, not seen since the days of Lange and Douglas.

She pulled the rug out from under Labour and started a Maori national movement.

But it is her push to change how state agencies interact with Maori, and giving Maori control over their own health services, that should be richly rewarded.

Her programme Whanau Ora is a radical approach to stop treating people as an individual within an institution and start treating families within their own social context. Healthy families, and the wider Pae Ora which includes Mauri Ora - healthy lives - and Wai Ora - healthy environments - are the crucial building blocks to better outcomes for Maori.

It's not perfect and there will be bumps along the way. But it is one of the first times New Zealand in any significant way has moved beyond a prescribed single culture to recognise other values. As has been said before, there is more than one way of doing things.

And if we do give out honours for work, then Dame Tariana should be first in line. She has fought and struggled and slogged for her achievements.

So a quick pause then to say well done. But as she herself has said - and it sounds like a threat - she won't be putting her feet up.