Minister welcomes race relations report

Maori Affairs Minister Dr Pita Sharples says the Human Rights Commission report on race relations during last year is a reminder of how vulnerable tangata whenua and ethnic communities are.

“The report is a great catalogue of achievements and milestones in race relations during 2008, noting extraordinary progress in Treaty settlements, increasing interfaith dialogue and cultural diversity,” said Dr Sharples.

“In the area of language alone, we had the launch of a Maori-language only TV channel, a monolingual dictionary of Maori, a school curriculum for Maori immersion schools, and a Pacific languages strategy,” he said.

“There were no race-related complaints to the Press Council, and only two to the Broadcasting Standards Authority. But there were lots of seminars on improving news coverage in a culturally diverse society. So that’s all good.

“The serious concerns were related to human rights, and the operations of the police and criminal justice and corrections sectors, and the Race Relations Commissioner has called for further action,” said Dr Sharples.

“Racist abuse and discrimination against Asian groups in particular, and a conviction for the racially motivated murder of a Korean student, are alarming reminders of how vulnerable ethnic minorities can be.

“But overshadowing race relations is the impact of a deepening recession on Maori and Pacific people and migrant communities.

“The Government knows that a recession will most affect people who have the fewest option to respond, that is, te pani me te rawakore, the alienated and dispossessed.

“That is why I called the Maori Economic Workshop, and the Prime Minister convened a Jobs Summit.

“There are clear priorities in this work to support Maori whanau and communities affected by the recession. I am in the process of appointing a Task Force of Maori leaders to advise me.

“Maori are active participants in the economy, and are becoming key players. There are many things Maori can do to take control of their economic destiny, from a whanau level, up to a national and even international level.

“The economic recession has prompted action on some issues that Maori have wanted addressed for some time, such as the transition from secondary to tertiary education, investigation of trade training, and development of Maori assets, so the news is not all bad.

“One of our strengths as Maori people is being able to co-operate, to support and look after each other. Iwi are already looking at pooling resources to create employment.

“The government is looking at the best ways to support flax-roots, community-led initiatives.

“I have been asked to follow up eight work streams from the PM's Jobs Summit. They cover a wide range of initiatives, and involve co-operation with many Ministers and government agencies, local government and iwi and Maori groups. It’s a huge challenge, but the stakes are high,” said Dr Sharples.