NZ PM Ardern urges unity on COVID-19 on Waitangi Day

Jacinda Ardern, New Zealand's Prime Minister, looks on during a press conference at Parliament on Sunday in Wellington, New Zealand. Auckland has entered Level 3 lockdown for the next seven days after a new COVID-19 case was detected in the community on Saturday. The rest of New Zealand will be subject to Level 2 restrictions for a week. Photo: VCG

Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern urged New Zealanders on Sunday to unite in their battle against COVID-19, as the pandemic forced the country to celebrate its national Waitangi Day online.

A growing outbreak of the highly transmissible Omicron variant has pushed all commemorations online, prompting Ardern to urge vaccinations.

"We all have a duty to do everything we can to protect our communities with all the tools that science and medicine have given us," Ardern said in a pre-recorded speech.

"Togetherness is something we have shown throughout the last few years. I know it hasn't always been easy ... But together we have, and we continue to, overcome."

Health ministry data show 93 percent of those eligible above the age of 12 have been fully vaccinated and 49 percent of eligible adults have received a booster shot, but infections keep rising. On Sunday, there were 208 new community cases, following a record 243 the previous day.

Waitangi Day is named for the region on the North Island where representatives of the British Crown and more than 500 indigenous Maori chiefs signed a founding treaty in 1840.

Maori, who account for about 15 percent of New Zealand's population, were dispossessed of much of their land during British colonization. In years past, many would protest on the Waitangi Day for civil and social rights, criticizing successive governments for not doing enough.

In December, Ardern's government set up the Maori Health Authority to ensure better health access to Maori.

"We have an obligation to make sure everyone has access to the healthcare they need, and that you don't die younger than everyone else in New Zealand because you are Maori," Ardern said on Sunday.

Reuters