Saving the Language or Inviting in the Fundamentalists?

Daily News; White Plains › August 03, 2004

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Summary

LAST WEEK was Maori language week -- an annual reminder of the importance of te reo in the battle to revive and preserve the Maori culture. This year the event had special significance, falling as it did just a few months after the start of the Maori Television channel, with its greater ability to encourage the use of the Maori language. While the jury is still out on the channel's chances of commercial success, early viewing figures show considerable interest in at least checking the service out. Statistics include an interesting indication that 60% of those tuning in are non-Maori. Some of this could be due to natural curiosity and the novelty factor, but may also reflect the fact that many people other than Maori take an interest in the indigenous culture and are keen to learn more about it.

The week was particularly significant this year because of the potential the channel has to help those trying to revive the language. Experience in Wales shows that within a year of introduction of a Welsh language TV service, there was a dramatic revival in the use of Gaelic. There is also a need for care, however, that honest enthusiasm for the task does not obscure the needs and demands of modern society. An Auckland academic, for example, has sounded a timely warning on the risk of Maori immersion teaching becoming a major cause of ethnic division. While making it clear she did not want to dampen interest in language week, Elizabeth Rata, a lecturer at the Auckland College of Education, says her research shows initiatives such as total Maori immersion language schools, or kura kaupapa Maori, are flawed. They can contribute to ethnic division, and can be anti-democratic and fundamentalist .