In Aotearoa New Zealand (Aotearoa NZ), Māori (the Indigenous peoples of New Zealand) have long been objects of surveillance by state institutions and agents. State representations have centred on constructions of difference and deviance, on understandings of Indigenous peoples as dangerous, and on the management of Indigenous resistance to colonialism. This chapter considers how contemporary state surveillance practices in Aotearoa NZ, enabled by the expanded use of big data and linked government datasets, function to regulate and manage Māori. Through this lens, we explore continuities of current data practices for Indigenous peoples with the racialised logics and social orders set in place as part of global systems of imperialism and colonialism. Recognising that resistance has always been a part of Indigenous responses to colonialism, we also explore how Māori Data Sovereignty (MDSov), as part of broader Indigenous Data Sovereignty (IDS) movements globally, provides opportunities to counter and disrupt prevailing data relations and to imagine alternative futures.
Similar to experiences of Indigenous peoples globally, Māori in the nation-state known as New Zealand (NZ) have been subjected to mass incarceration by the colonial state. Places of detention are dangerous environments for the spread of COVID-19. We are deeply concerned about the potential for disproportionate impacts of COVID-19 on Māori and other Indigenous peoples within these environments as many have health conditions and/or multiple comorbidities compounding the risks of severe illness and death from COVID-19. We call for the NZ government to honour te Tiriti o Waitangi obligations and uphold Indigenous rights contained within the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples and other international rights instruments. A whole-of-government commitment to an equitable public health approach is required to: 1) rapidly reduce the numbers of Māori in sites of detention; 2) implement effective, timely, evidenced informed measures to reduce the risk of COVID-19, in line with World Health Organization recommendations; 3) prevent the torture and cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment of detained Māori during COVID-19; and, 4) eliminate double-celling. Although focused on NZ, the themes we highlight are likely of relevance for Indigenous peoples across the globe in our collective resistance to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Global disease trackers quantifying the size, spread, and distribution of COVID-19 illustrate the power of data during the pandemic. Data are required for decision-making, planning, mitigation, surveillance, and monitoring the equity of responses. There are dual concerns about the availability and suppression of COVID-19 data; due to historic and ongoing racism and exclusion, publicly available data can be both beneficial and harmful. Systemic policies related to genocide and racism, and historic and ongoing marginalization, have led to limitations in quality, quantity, access, and use of Indigenous Peoples' COVID-19 data. Governments, non-profits, researchers, and other institutions must collaborate with Indigenous Peoples on their own terms to improve access to and use of data for effective public health responses to COVID-19.
Topic: Perspectives on Linkage Involving Indigenous dataIndigenous populations across the globe are reaffirming their sovereignty rights in the collection and use of Indigenous data. The Indigenous data sovereignty movement has been widely influential and can be unsettling for those who routinely use population-level linked data that include Indigenous identifiers. Ethical policies that stipulate community engagement for access, interpretation and dissemination of Indigenous data create an enabling environment through the critical process of negotiating and navigating data access in partnership with communities. This session will be designed to create space for leading Indigenous voices to set the tone for the discussion around Indigenous population data linkage.
Objectives:
To provide participants with an opportunity to build on the themes of Indigenous Data Sovereignty presented in the keynote session as they apply to diverse Indigenous populations.
To explore approaches to the linkage of Indigenous-identified population data across four countries, including First Nations in three Canadian regions.
To share practical applications of Indigenous data sovereignty on data linkage and analysis and discussion.
To center Indigenous-driven data linkage and research.
Facilitator:Jennifer Walker. Canada Research Chair in Indigenous Health, Laurentian University and Indigenous Lead, Institute for Clinical Evaluative Sciences.
Collaborators:
Alberta: Bonnie Healy, Tina Apsassin, Chyloe Healy and William Wadsworth (Alberta First Nations Information Governance Centre)
Ontario: Carmen R. Jones (Chiefs of Ontario) and Jennifer Walker (Institute for Clinical Evaluative Sciences)
British Columbia: Jeff Reading (Providence Health Centre) and Laurel Lemchuk-Favel (First Nations Health Authority)
Australia: Raymond Lovett (Australian National University)
Aotearoa / New Zealand: Donna Cormack (University of Otago)
United States: Stephanie Rainie and Desi Rodriguez-Lonebear (University of Arizona)
Session format: 90 minutesCollaborators will participate in a round-table introduction to the work they are doing. Collaborators will discuss the principles underlying their approaches to Indigenous data linkage as well as practical and concrete solutions to challenges. Questions to guide the discussion will be pre-determined by consensus among the collaborators and the themes will include: data governance, community engagement, Indigenous-led linkage and analysis of data, and decision-making regarding access to linked data. Other participants attending the session will be encouraged to listen and will have an opportunity to engage in the discussion and ask questions.
Intended output or outcome:The key outcome of the session will be twofold. First, those actively working with Indigenous linked data will have an opportunity for an in-depth and meaningful dialogue about their work, which will promote international collaboration and sharing of ideas. Second, those with less experience and knowledge of the principles of Indigenous data sovereignty and their practical application will have an opportunity to listen to Indigenous people who are advancing the integration of Indigenous ways of knowing into data linkage and analysis.
The output of the session will be a summary paper highlighting both the diversity and commonalities of approaches to Indigenous data linkage internationally. Areas where consensus exists, opportunities for collaboration, and challenges will be highlighted.
Introduction: Zeros and ones, off and on / Andrew Chen -- Digitised lies -- Ngā kōrero rūpahu o te ao matihiko / Curtis R. Barnes, Tom Barraclough -- Reducing online harm -- Te whakaiti tūkino tuihono / Katherine Errington in conversation with Anjum Rajman -- The environmental impacts of globalised computing -- Ngā pāpātanga ā-taiao o ngā mahi rorohiko ā-ao / Merrin Macleod -- Not one byte more -- Kia kaua tētahi paita anō / Donna Cormack, Tahu Kukutai, Chris Cormack -- The integrated data infrastructure -- Te hanganga o ngā raraunga kōmitimiti me te whakaaentanga ā-iwi / Caleb Moses -- Predictive risk models in criminal justice -- Te matapae tūraru ā-hiko me te pūnaha ture taihara / Briony Blackmore -- Soltions have problems -- He mate anō tō te rongoā / Stephen Judd -- Digital inclusion -- Te whakaōrite i te urunga ki te ao matihiko / Anna Prendergast, Kelly Prendergast -- The spread of online fascism -- Te horapa o te mana whakamatua kotahi i to ao tuihono / Serena Chen -- A framework for response -- He anga urupare / Serena Chen -- Notes.
