Bill to revitalise te reo Māori through partnership

The Māori Language (Te Reo Māori) Bill, tabled back in Parliament today, introduces a new way of the Crown and Māori working together to revive te reo Māori.

“Our reo is a taonga and we all need to work together to ensure it survives and flourishes”, says Mr Flavell.

The Māori Language (Te Reo Māori) Bill was introduced by the previous Māori Affairs Minister Hon Sir Dr Pita Sharples with the intent of giving iwi and Māori a stronger leadership role in the goal to revive te reo Māori as a living language.

Mr Flavell says while the bill remains true to his predecessor’s intent, “it also clarifies the roles of the Crown and Māori with respect to the protection and promotion of te reo”.

The establishment of Te Mātāwai – a new independent statutory organisation that will lead the Māori and iwi language strategy - remains central to the Bill. It recognises Māori as kaitiaki (guardians) of the language.

Changes to the original bill were made following recommendations by the Ministerial Advisory Group on how the roles of the Crown and Māori could be clarified in their report Te Whare o Te Reo Mauriora. 

“I am delighted to see that those changes are reflected in the bill reported back today, and I thank the Ministerial Advisory Group and the Māori Affairs Committee for their thorough consideration of the bill,” he says.

The changes included keeping Te Taura Whiri i te Reo Māori (the Māori Language Commission) and Te Māngai Pāho (the Māori Broadcasting Funding Agency) as independent Crown entities rather than bringing them under Te Mātāwai.

“The bill also provides for Te Mātāwai and the Crown to each develop complementary language strategies to support the revival of the Māori language.

“One of the most important functions of this bill is that it affirms the status of te reo Māori as an official language of our country and as a taonga of te iwi Māori.

“I am committed to working with all people and organisations who are committed to the survival of te reo Māori. We all have an important part to play,” Mr Flavell says.

For more information on the Bill, go to www.tpk.govt.nz

He pire whakarauora i te reo Māori mā te mahi tahi

Ko te Pire mō Te Reo Māori, i whakatakotoria ki mua i te aroaro o te Whare Paremata i tēnei rangi, ka whakapuaki i tētahi huarahi hou e mahi tahi ai te Karauna me ngāi Māori ki te whakarauora i te reo Māori.

“He taonga te reo, ā, me mahi tahi tātou katoa kia tūturu ai ka ora tonu te reo, ka pūāwai hoki te reo”, te kī a Minita Flavell.

I whakapuakina te Pire mō Te Reo Māori e te Minita Take Māori o mua, e Honore Tā Pita Sharples, me te whāinga kia whai wāhi ngā iwi me ngāi Māori ki te ārahi kaha i te piro kia whakarauoratia te reo hei reo ora.

E ai ki a Minita Flavell, ahakoa ka mau tonu te wairua o te pire ki te whāinga o te Minita o mua “ka whakamārama ake tēnei i ngā mahi a te Karauna me ngāi Māori e pā ana ki te whakamarumaru me te toko ake i te reo Māori.”

Ko te whakatū i a Te Mātāwai – he rōpū whakahaere ā-ture motuhake hou e ārahi ai i te rautaki reo a ngāi Māori me ngā iwi – kei te manawa tonu o te Pire. Ka whakaū tēnei i a ngāi Māori hei kaitiaki mō te reo.

I mahia ngā panonitanga ki te pire tīmata i muri mai i tā Te Rōpū Tohutohu Minita whakatakoto tūtohu e whakamārama ana mā roto i tā rātou pūrongo, arā, ko Te Whare o Te Reo Mauriora, ka pēhea te mahi a te Karauna me ngā ngāi Māori

“Kei te hari koa au ki te kite atu kei te whakaaturia aua panonitanga i roto i te pire i whakatakotoria i tēnei rā, ā, ka mihi atu au ki a Te Rōpū Tohutohu Minita me te Komiti Take Māori mō tā rātou whakaaroaro tino kaha mō te pire,” tana kī.

I roto i ngā panonitanga ka tū tonu a Te Taura Whiri i te Reo Māori, a Te Māngai Pāho hoki, hei hinonga Karauna motuhake, ā, kāore ērā e noho i raro i a Te Mātāwai.

“Ka whakatau hoki te pire mā Te Mātāwai, mā te Karauna hoki, e hanga rautaki reo motuhake, engari e tautoko ana tēnā i tēnā, hei taunaki i te whakarauoratanga o te reo Māori.

“Ko tētahi o ngā āheinga whakahirahira o tēnei pire ko tana whakaū i te mana o te reo Māori hei reo whai mana ā-ture mō tō tātou whenua, hei taonga hoki nō te iwi Māori.

“Ka mau tonu au ki te whakaaro mahi tahi me ngā tāngata katoa, ngā rōpū whakahaere katoa hoki, e ū tonu ana ki te oranga tonutanga o te reo Māori. Kei tēnā, kei tēnā o tātou tētahi wāhanga nui kia mahia,” tā Minita Flavell kōrero.

Mō ētahi pārongo anō mō te Pire, tirohia www.tpk.govt.nz