Amidst the Ministry of Health's changes to tangihanga, residents of the small rural community of Whananaki say the lack of consultation with Māori is unacceptable.
The fear comes after the MOH released guidelines saying whānau are not allowed to go to the funeral home for viewing, karakia, poroporoakī or mihi.
They call it the 'centre of their universe' but there are fears the new tangihanga processes will bring huge challenges for their community.
Allen Moore (Te Whānau Whero) says, "Consultation is the name of the game and there was none of that really you know."
"Just having your family when taken away from you like that. Just thinking about it. It's heart-wrenching when you do it the proper way. there will be kicking and screaming," says Charlie Waetford (Te Whānau Whero).
"This valley here we used to look after our own we used to prepare them, get the coffin and bury them ourselves. We can go back to that. Real quick," says Allan Moore.
On any given day in Aotearoa over 100 people die. This Northland community strongly believes each person deserves a proper burial.
Allan says, "You think of what our old soldiers went through in their day when they went off to war. At least they had their own there to support them and this just takes that all away from us."
Charlie Waetford is the caretaker of the local urupā, he believes the new restrictions will only make the grieving process harder.
Discussions within the Ministry are ongoing however the guidelines will stay in place until either levels are lifted or a new alternative is found.