Māori Language Act 2016
| Māori Language Act 2016 Te Ture mō Te Reo Māori 2016 | |
|---|---|
 | |
| New Zealand Parliament | |
| Citation | 2016 No 17 |
| Royal assent | 2016-04-29 |
| Commenced |
|
| Legislative history | |
| Introduced | 2014-07-24 |
| First reading | 2014-07-24 |
| Second reading | 2016-03-09 |
| Third reading | 2016-04-14 |
| Related legislation | |
| Status: In force | |
The Māori Language Act 2016 (No 17) is an act which relates to the revitalisation of the Māori language.
Drafting
[edit]In designing the legislation, the government looked at evidence provided by Te Paepae Motuhake, Waitangi Tribunal and others.[1]
Provisions
[edit]The act established Te Mātāwai, an organisation of iwi, urban and Crown representatives.[2] Te Mātāwai works with the government under the public policy framework Te Whare o te reo Mauriora.[3]
The status of the Māori language as a "taonga" (English: treasure) was reaffirmed by the legislation.[4] The legislation also placed an obligation on the government to protect the Māori langauge.[5]
The legislation allows for the use of the Māori language lawyers, judges and witnesses in court.[6]
Criticism
[edit]Northland iwi Te Rūnanga o Ngāti Rēhia, Te Poari o Ngātiwai, Te Rūnanga a Iwi o Ngāpuhi, Te Reo Ngāti Hine filed a judicial review, criticising Māori language being "inconsequential" in the country's courts.[7]
References
[edit]- ^ Ruckstuhl, Katharina (3 July 2018). "Public policy and indigenous language rights: Aotearoa New Zealand's Māori Language Act 2016". Current Issues in Language Planning. 19 (3): 316–329. doi:10.1080/14664208.2017.1391496. ISSN 1466-4208.
- ^ Haunui-Thompson, Shannon (15 April 2016). "Celebration as Māori language bill passed". Radio New Zealand. Archived from the original on 28 January 2022. Retrieved 25 April 2025.
- ^ Waikato, Herewini (28 February 2022). "Te Arawa's new māngai to Te Mātāwai". Te Ao Māori News. Archived from the original on 25 April 2025. Retrieved 25 April 2025.
- ^ Breen, Claire (22 December 2020). "Bilingual road signs in Aotearoa New Zealand would tell us where we are as a nation". The Conversation. Archived from the original on 18 February 2022. Retrieved 25 April 2025.
- ^ McConnell, Glenn (11 September 2022). "Te Reo Māori: From banned, to 'official', to a 'taonga' and beyond". Stuff. Archived from the original on 24 September 2022. Retrieved 25 April 2025.
- ^ Walters, Laura (10 February 2019). "Te reo in the courts and 'language trauma'". Newsroom. Archived from the original on 1 December 2023. Retrieved 25 April 2025.
- ^ Neaverson, Georgia (5 November 2021). "High Court claim by Māori iwi calls for judicial review of te reo Māori use in courts". NZ Lawyer. KM Business Information NZ. Archived from the original on 9 November 2024. Retrieved 25 April 2025.