Davis Kelvin: Criminal Investigations (Bodily Samples) Amendment Bill — In Committee Third Reading 
Davis Kelvin: Criminal Investigations (Bodily Samples) Amendment Bill — In Committee Third Reading 
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KELVIN DAVIS (Labour) 
: 
 I agree with what my colleague Carmel Sepuloni has outlined in terms of cultural safety in the Criminal Investigations (Bodily Samples) Amendment Bill. It is really important I think that people understand the Maori perspective on the collection of bodily samples. I make it clear that I support legislation that makes it easier for us to identify and apprehend offenders. I think that DNA is the new fingerprint and it will be very useful in apprehending offenders. But I think we need to be mindful of the cultural side of things. 
I will use three examples from my own background to illustrate how Maori feel about bodily samples. Some people may think that I am being a bit silly about it but I tell them that those beliefs are very real to Maori. The first one is a very simple example. At our family homestead in the sleepy hollow of Taumarere there is a plum tree that produces the greatest plums but nobody is allowed to eat them. The reason is that traditionally that is where my grandfather great-grandfather and all my great-great-uncles had their hair cut and the hair would be buried under that plum tree. Hair is treated as tapu as Carmel Sepuloni said. It was buried under that plum tree so nobody was allowed to go near the plum tree or touch the plums. 
Another example is the cutting of fingernails or any other sort of—what is the word? 
Hon Darren Hughes 
: Bodily functions. 
KELVIN DAVIS 
: —intimate articles that belong to a person. It does not have to be only bodily samples; it could be someone’s possessions that are intimate or close to that person. If somebody was able to get hold of them they could do some sort of harm to the person. In Maori terms we would call that a makutu. We are always mindful that when we cut our hair or fingernails we never just dispose of them where people can get hold of them in case they get hold of them and create some harm for us. That is the basis for why Maori are particularly concerned about what happens to bodily samples such as DNA. 
To make it clear I believe that if someone is guilty and he or she has DNA or bodily samples taken from him or her then quite frankly I am quite glad that that is happening and I am not precious about it at all. We have to make sure that New Zealand is a safe place. We need to be able to identify and apprehend offenders. But we need to be cognisant of the cultural aspect of taking body parts or body samples from people—Maori and Pacific Islanders in particular. 
Another example I would like to give occurred earlier this year. About 6 weeks ago a baby passed away and an autopsy was held. The samples taken from the organs were very small—about the size of a fingernail—yet they were not returned in a culturally appropriate way to the family and it caused a lot of angst. The coroner had a heck of a lot of explaining to do. The coroner being Maori had spent a lot of time and effort trying to make sure that the processes that the Coronial Services went through were culturally sensitive. However they were let down at this time and a lot of rebuilding had to be done. 
Those are just small examples of how when we take bodily samples from people we have to treat those samples in a culturally sensitive way. But I express my belief that this bill will be good for New Zealand. It will help to apprehend offenders and identify them and that is good for New Zealand. Labour supports this bill but it is really important that the Maori perspective—the Maori aspect—is taken into account.