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School sanctions should be proportionate

OPINION: The recently publicised case of the Auckland student excluded from school for swearing at a teacher in 2019 attracted some public backlash, much of it focusing on the need for kids to respect rules.The Chief Ombudsman overruled the school board, claiming it was incorrect to deem the student’s behaviour as “gross misconduct” warranting permanent expulsion. In this case, the student had told a teacher to “f... off” and “don’t touch my s..t”, when the teacher atte...

Rugby: 'Objectified and commercially exploited'

An English rugby writer says the haka has been 'objectified and commercially exploited' by rugby in a column that asks if the All Blacks' pre-match routine is on borrowed time.The Telegraph's Charles Richardson penned a column on the topic of English team Exeter Chiefs and their Native American branding which has come under scrutiny.The Exeter Chiefs had a review of their name last year which saw the side remove the mascot Big Chief, but retained the Chiefs moniker. Now supporters from rival sid...

All the locations of interest in NZ’s delta

Knowing where and when those infected with delta have been while symptomatic gives those who may have come into contact with them the best shot at protecting themselves and their community. If you have been at any of these locations during the relevant time, you should self-isolate and call Healthline on 0800 358 5453.Locations of interest, mapped, with date they were added Note: The categories Previous, Yesterday and Today indicate when the location information was last updated. Repeat loc...

Victims, survivors of family violence

Victims and survivors of family violence are being urged to seek help, even though the country is in lockdown.Chief Victims Advisor Kim McGregor said the police and other support agencies were essential services, so they continued to operate.Many people and families would be more experiencing more stress at home, McGregor said."Even though we are currently in self-isolation, we still want to hear from you if you, or someone in your bubble is being hurt," she said.If someone is in immediate dange...

Learning the features of verbs

In attempting to learn another language it’s frequently the forms of verbs which present the major difficulties.As has been observed previously in this column, this is much less of a problem with te reo Māori.In te reo the base word used as a verb remains constant regardless of tense, person or number: I haere / au. (“I went.”) E haere ana / rātou. (“They are going.”) Kua haere / a Mere. (“Mary has gone.”)But although the tenses of verbs in te reo are less problematic than in man...

Otago Museum

A te reo Maori name change could be on the cards for Otago Museum.Museum director Dr Ian Griffin said in his report to the Otago Museum Trust board meeting yesterday the museum’s Maori advisory committee would meet mana whenua representatives to consider recommending a Maori name.Dr Griffin said the process was driven by mana whenua not the museum.He did not want to be seen to predetermine anything, or influence a decision.With Toitu and Te Papa as examples, the idea was not an unusual one and...

Tiny New Zealand airport

A tiny regional airport in New Zealand that weaves a Māori story of love and longing into its architecture is in the running for a prestigious design award, up against international heavyweights including New York’s LaGuardia.Unesco’s Prix Versailles recognises architecture that fosters a better interaction between economy and culture, and includes a range of categories from airports to shopping malls. The finalists for the airport category include the New York LaGuardia upgrade, ...

Inside the community

Homelessness is a difficult subject. Each path to the street is vastly different, each person’s experience is unique.Patrick doesn’t know when exactly he became “a streetie”. It was sometime in his late teenage years, but there is no exact day or moment which pinpoints the moment he became “homeless”.For others, there’s the moment they were kicked out of home. It could be the day they decided to run away. It could be the afternoon they were discharged from hospital, or perhaps when...

Oranga Tamariki chief

Sir Wira Gardiner, the acting chief executive of Oranga Tamariki, has taken a leave of absence for "health reasons".Chappie Te Kani, Oranga Tamariki's acting deputy chief executive for governance and engagement, has taken over as acting chief executive of the department.Gardiner was handpicked by the Government on March 1 to reform the organisation after a series of scandals involving the uplift of Māori babies and mistreatment of children in state care.Link to article: Oranga Tamariki chi...

Iwi stand up to KiwiRail plans

Manawatū-based iwi Ngāti Kauwhata wants to be an equal partner in decisions about KiwiRail’s proposed rail freight development close to Aorangi Marae.Ngā Kaitiaki O Ngāti Kauwhata chairman Dennis Emery told the commissioners hearing KiwiRail’s plans to designate 177 hectares for the freight centre there required adequate consultation before plans were approved.He said iwi did not agree with the site between Palmerston North Airport and Bunnythorpe, and did not want to commit to any condi...

Oranga Tamariki wants girl removed from couple after three years

A traumatised and neglected Māori girl was placed in the care of a Pākehā couple. They have provided her with a safe, healthy, loving environment for nearly three years. No one disputes that the girl, now nearly 6, has received excellent care from the couple.But Oranga Tamariki and the girl's iwi want her removed because they don’t think the couple can meet her cultural needs.Over a recent week in the Family Court in Napier, the circumstances that led to this battle were laid out in painsta...

Tūpuna portraits helping prisoners

Since 2016, through their Behind the Wire - Rangatahi ki Rangatira, the Nordstroms have been taking portraits of men from the Te Ao Marama unit in Waikeria Prison.  As of June 2021, Māori make up 53.1 per cent of the country's prison population.  The Nordstroms also take portraits of people in Māori, Pasifika, Native American and First Nations regalia with their Soldiers Rd Potraits. They have been doing so since 2013. "We recreate images of our people looking like our...

TJ Perenara seeks answers

Hurricanes star TJ Perenara is seeking answers from team management following board member Troy Bowker's disparaging comments towards Sir Ian Taylor, which the All Black says contained "underlying racism''.Bowker accused Taylor of “sucking up to the left Māori loving agenda”, despite the animation entrepreneur's Māori heritage, after the latter posted a response to National Party leader Judith Collins’ backing for a referendum on the use of the name Aotearoa for New Zealand.Bowker, ...

North Waikato school changes name

At the end of this school term, Mercer School will be moving to recognise the schools' new name, Te Paina - which represents the history of the area.The school was named after Captain Mercer who was a captain in the british army and fought and died in the Waikato land wars at Rangiriri.Principal Paula Faitala says a huge amount of personal and professional growth was needed to start the journey.Faitala says she was challenged at the beginning of her role, about four years ago, if she understood ...

MediaWorks hit with $3000 fine for John Banks’

The Broadcasting Standards Authority (BSA) said the on-air exchange between Banks and a caller breached the good taste and decency, and denigration standards. In January, fill-in host Banks came under fire after he agreed with a talkback caller's racist comments. The caller, named Richard, claimed Māori were "stone age people from a stone age culture"."This notion that Māori are victims... they're victims of their own genetic background. They're genetically predisposed to crime,...

Hurricanes 'do not support'

Wellington businessman and Hurricanes board member Troy Bowker has accused animation entrepreneur Sir Ian Taylor of “sucking up to the left Māori loving agenda”, despite Taylor’s Māori heritage.Taylor’s post five days ago was in response to National leader Judith Collins’ backing for a referendum on the use of the name Aotearoa for New Zealand.In his LinkedIn post Taylor, whose firm Animation Research Limited is famous for its America’s Cup and global ...

A kaiako on the year’s best

Pati Hakaria is a kaiako at Te Puāwaitanga, the immersion unit at Birkdale Primary, in Auckland. She shares her own te reo story, and talks about some of the picture books shortlisted for the Wright Family Foundation Te Kura Pounamu Award for te reo Māori. Just letting you know, my reo is not formal. It might change as I get older but right now my goal is just to be able to speak at home the language that I speak when I go back to where I’m from, and where my husband’s from – he’s...

Gangs offer prospects up to $20,000 to join

Modern gangs are recruiting new members with "starter packs", a former gang member claims.Wi Turei Waikari, who was a Mongrel Mob member, said in his day a leather jacket and a pair of gumboots was all gang members needed.He told Te Ao with Moana that modern gangs are now using a range of attractions to lure rangatahi into gang life.Link to video and article: Gangs offer prospects up to $20,000 to join - former Mongrel Mob member - NZ Herald...

Mahi a Atua

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The making of a Māori town:

For most of my life, I’ve been a city dweller. I was born in Christchurch and have lived in Wellington, Auckland, Sydney and London. By the time I hit my 40s, I was lucky enough to be able to work from home, and decided that a small town life was what I wanted.The city is a magnificent human creation responsible for great leaps of progress, but I was over the traffic, the noise, and the crowds. I was also irritated by people with an excess of money or self-regard and an indecent wish for more....

Frustrations boil over

Students and their whānau have marched through the streets of Pukekohe in south Auckland as a stand-off with their school board and the principal reached boiling point.Scores of people walked to Pukekohe North School from Ngā Hau e Whā o Pukekohe marae and performed a haka outside the school gates in protest of how the school was being run.They then marched on to the centre of Pukekohe where they continued their protest.They are calling for the acting principal and the school’s board of tru...

Hamilton politicans shy away

Hamilton is embracing te reo Māori when it comes to naming new city streets but making its use mandatory looks like a political dead end.Since 2016, more than a third of new city streets have received a te reo Māori name. City-wide, about 10 per cent of street names are in te reo.Hamilton street names have become a fertile area of debate in recent years, with growing calls for the city to revisit street names honouring colonial figures such as Gustavus Ferdinand von Tempsky, Sir Geor...

Let’s choose our words more carefully

Responding to the recent controversy over mātauranga Māori and the letter he co-authored titled "In defence of science", Emeritus Professor Michael Corballis said: "We don't know any Māori who knows what mātauranga is".This immediately made us wonder: What would happen if we asked a group of scientists what science is?Common responses to the question "what is science?" focus on causal explanations, controlled experiments, hypothesis testing or falsification (those are popular options, not an...

Māori to get more say on New Plymouth street names

Hapū and iwi have been promised more influence in naming new roads in New Plymouth.Ngāti te Whiti hapū had called on New Plymouth District Council to involve Māori when developments are first considered, saying their late involvement is leading to painful compromises.The council's iwi committee promised officials would be instructed to change how they work so mana whenua are consulted from the start of resource consent processes.Te Huinga Taumatua yesterday approved a name for a right-of-way...

The schools walking

Māori educators are optimistic that a range of initiatives is converging to create lasting change in the school system.They have told RNZ they believe a combination of teacher training and requirements that make te reo and tikanga compulsory for teachers and schools could have a powerful effect.But they say a lot will depend on the willingness of teachers and principals to embrace the changes.RNZ spoke with principals from four schools to find out how they are responding to the challenge.L...