At a hui I attended over the weekend, one of the speakers on the paepae traced the influence of wahine Maori right across the motu - connecting them all by whakapapa and by deed.  

It was a most magnificent experience, to hear this young man speak with such pride and honour of mana wahine within the context of their impact on whanau, hapu and iwi.

He talked of Rangi Topeora, one of the few women who signed Te Tiriti o Waitangi  - a passionate leader of Ngati Toa, who was one of the few women also of her time to speak formally on the marae.  

Rangi Topeora could trace her direct descent from Hoturoa; she was actively involved in both war and peace, particularly mediation over disputed land and on top of all of that she was known as a composer of beautiful waiata. 

And isn't that mana wahine personified....journeying by waka, walking over rugged hill tracks, delivering formidable whaikorero, fighting for our land, and creating musical poetry all at the same time.

This is the strength of mana wahine that we know helps to drive our cervical cancer health promotion and screening services. 

It is that same passion and commitment that we see underpinning Breastscreen Aotearoa; the National Kaitiaki Group; the National Screening Unit Maori Advisory Group and Te Whatu Manawa - the kaimahi governance group.

And I want to mihi to all of you today, who work so hard to keep our women well, to reduce the incidence and mortality of breast cancer and cervical cancer, and who spend your every waking moment thinking of new way to make screening work.

I want to make particular mention to Mana Wahine Inc and the Wellington Regional Screening Service who are hosting this year's National Kaimahi Hui.

Next year, marks twenty years since the formation of Mana Wahine at a hui held at Waiwhetu Marae. Wahine Maori were adamant that if services were to be developed then wahine Maori needed to be right there, driving, designing and delivering the services.

Today Mana Wahine Inc is an incorporated society and demonstrates to us all the power of the collective, in their collaboration across the greater Wellington and Wairarapa regions.

I acknowledge the leadership you have shown us - Hora Te Pai Health Services; Ora Toa, Maraeroa Marae, Te Ngawari Hauora Trust; Kokiri Marae, Koraunui Marae and Whaiora Whanui. 

In the days before the Horne Report recommended such co-operation made sense, you have shown us how a collective commitment to the Breastscreen Aotearoa screening programme and the National Cervical Screening programme has made a real difference to outcomes.

And I want to place on record my belief that ‘outcomes' is not just code for numbers of visits taken, number of women screened.

The outcomes Mana Wahine Inc has achieved include practical, tangible outputs such as the development of smear taking standards, national resources such as Atawhaitia Te Wharetangata; Breast Screening and Cervical Screening Policy  Quality Standards and expert advice.

But most of all outcomes is about the difference being made to the lives of whanau.

It is about cherishing and protecting our aunties, our mothers, our nannies.

It is about investing in the potential of our kotiro, instilling in them the precious knowledge of the whare tangata.

And it is at all times treasuring the promise of the next generation; the mokopuna to come who will lead our people onwards.

In the panui inviting me to this hui, there was a statement, "Ma te hauora o nga whaea ka piki te ora o te whanau o te hapu, me te iwi".

If you look after our mothers and our aunties, then you look after the generations that follow.

We need look no further than Aunty Mekura's (Taiaroa-Briggs) story to remind us of the reason we are all here.

Our beautiful aunty was not just a beloved kuia, an adored taua for our whanau of Te Wainui-a-rua, Tuwharetoa, Ngati Hauiti ki Rata, and Kati Mamoe, Waitaha, Kai Tahu.

She was also the kaumatua for the Canterbury Cervical Screening Service - a role she threw herself into with enormous gusto.

When she was sixty Aunty Mekura was successfully treated for cervical cancer.

But she nearly left it too late.

Aunty hac been diagnosed with advanced cancer of the cervix. The doctor told her, that if she had left it for one more month it would have been too late for treatment.

Aunty once said, and I want to share her comments with us,

 

Having regular cervical smears is the best way to detect problems before they turn into cancers.

 

But for Māori that area of the body is tapu, special and sacred - the whare tangata or the House of the Generations. This is a big reason why our wahine don't want the area to be looked at, or a smear taken.

 

I tell my story so our wahine Māori won't be whakamā about these things and will have the smear test done.

And so Aunty went on from then,  fuelled by a fierce passion to share her experiences so that other wahine Maori would seek help early if they have a problem with a cervical abnormality and get it treated before it develops into cancer.

Her message was simple: ‘Make sure you are there for your whanau'.

We might also say, make sure you are there for your whakapapa.

The reproductive process itself is foundation of whakapapa and the strength of our existence, our relationships, our bones.

We know this because the words are interchangable - hapu; the state of pregnancy and the people; whanau - the birthing process and the extended family; iwi - the tribe and our bones.

Regular prevention; health promotion and treatment undertaken in a culturally sensitive way is thus of absolute importance in such a sacred area of our lives.

And ultimately that is the message I want to share with all of us today - how critical it is that we take care of our lives and of those around us.

You might have seen a headline in the papers this morning which announced my decision to undergo gastric bypass surgery.

Now if I'd have had my way, that wouldn't have been the headline to come out of our annual general meeting.

But I accept there will be interest - and if that interest can inspire others to look at what they need to do, to look after their health I'd be delighted.

My decision to have the operation is motivated by my mokopuna first and foremost.  

Of course if I become a Beehive Babe, I guess I could accept that.  But my primary reason is to enjoy good health; to restore my tinana to a state free of diabetes, of chest infections, of asthma.

I have many many mokopuna - and many, many reasons, therefore, to do what I can to take care of myself - and therefore of them.

Ultimately - that is whanau ora.

That we realise our roles, responsibilities and obligations to each other.   That we invest in the capability of our whanau to be models for lifestyle; to be carriers of our culture and our heritage, to protect our whakapapa.

Whanau ora provides the gateway to te Ao Maori for us all.  It brings into one being, the spiritual aspects of our world; our history, our taonga, our identity.

We will know whanau ora is achieved, when our kuia and koroua play a full role in the family, and in the life of the marae and community.  Whanau ora will be evident when we bear witness to our matua supporting and nurturing the extended whanau.

The fate of whanau ora will be assured when all our tamariki are loved, nurtured, protected and enabled to grow to their full potential.

I am really excited about the potential of whanau ora for all our families to flourish.  And if you can access the MSD website, I'd really encourage you to download some of the documents there, and to find out when and where the hui are happening, as called for by the Whanau Ora Taskforce.

This week, I know there are hui in Hawera tomorrow, the Hawkes Bay on Wednesday, Auckland on Thursday and back here in Wellington on Friday - and there's another  dozen or so hui after that - so please come along.

Finally, I want to wish you all the best for your hui.  Bringing kaimahi from across the motu together is to important for lifting the spirits and keeping the morale high.

I know that the responsibility to encourage women to take up the cervical smear tests, to have the mammogram, and to recruit women to enter the screening programmes is a significant one - indeed a life-saving one. 

I want to place on record my appreciation - and also to congratulate this workforce, on the success in that both the cervical screening programme and Breastscreen Aotearoa have increased your coverage for Maori women over the last year.

You are determined to make the service work for Maori women. 

Just as Rangi Topeora fought for her whenua, or Aunty Mekura sacrificed herself to the cause of future generations, all of us can take up the challenge to keep ourselves well, to walk our talk, to live our lives in ways which lead to whanau ora for all.