Iwi score badly on Māori language report card

Māori language group Umere has given 'iwi corporates' a "Not achieved" for not standing up for te reo.

'When te reo has been on the line, 'corporate iwi leaders' have been silent. They said nothing when TVNZ closed its Māori department, or when Māori TV's current affairs programming was weakened after its expose of leadership issues in Māori organisations.'

The leaders of these 'corporate Treaty-iwi' structures have been silent on Maori language issues. Since profits and not language is the focus of the corporates, the government must taihoa on its plans to hand Taura Whiri, Māori TV etc to them.

For Umere, these lessons have been learnt:

- there is little evidence of commitment to reo Maori from iwi corporates to date, therefore it doesn't make sense to hand the reins for te reo to Te Mātāwai.
- even the groups that took the te reo Tribunal claim are opposed to Te Matawai.
- with little community support for Te Matawai, the government needs to can the new model.

- the new model merely absolves the govt of much of their responsibility to supporting te reo Māori
- Money that will be wasted on the establishment of Te Matawai would be better spent polishing the current Te Māngai Pāho, Te Taura Whiri and Te Pūtahi Pāho organisations

Umere says the government must boost the resource and legal status of existing bodies. Umere wants to see Maori language targets set and an annual report card on whether the government is meeting its duties to the Maori language under the Treaty. Umere says that any changes to the Act must strengthen the capacity to promote and protect te reo Māori. On that account the new Bill also gets a "Not achieved".

The group is making an oral submission to the Maori Affairs Select Committee at 10.30 am today.

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