In one of my conversations with Labour Wellington Central members recently I was asked what was a view I held that would be unpopular. It was a good question (try asking a friend, it’s fun!), but one that I found I answered very quickly. I think that Te Reo Maori should be taught compulsorily in schools, probably from age 5-14. I know that a lot of people find this idea difficult, but events of recent times have only reinforced my view that this would be an important element in improving race relations in New Zealand. Learning a language is the key to unlocking the door to understanding a culture. I strongly believe that this is also a key to what I consider to be one of the major challenges to my generation of politically minded people. How to move race relations in New Zealand forward in a positive way.

As I have said previously I think we need to reserve judgement on both those arrested under the so-called Operation 8 and the actions of the police in executing the raids and arrests. But what the last week has exposed for me again, whatever the rights and wrongs of this specific situation, is that the on-going sense of grievance and injustice felt by many Maori, is matched only by the lack of acceptance and understanding of those grievances by many in the rest of the population.

It is easy to live in a ‘Wellington bubble’ on the issues of race in New Zealand. The public service, not always to great effect, bend over backwards to find ways of ‘being responsive to Maori’. We want to believe that the Treaty Settlements process while slow, is progressing and that redress is being achieved. We also can find great examples of Maori success and development, economically and socially. While this is true and real, it is clearly not creating the sense of redress and reconciliation that is central to Maori feeling a sense of social justice. Maori still find themselves lagging behind in key social indicators (despite a recent closing of the gaps, to coin a phrase) and the lingering alienation from the settlement process, and the seabed and foreshore debate are still pervasive.

Don’t get me wrong- this is not a hand-wringing call for Pakeha to drop everything and agree to any old Treaty claim or call for funding or support. I went to my share of Treaty workshops and decolonisation weekends in the 1990s. They were not that helpful to be honest. They seemed to be all about guilt and blame, and very little about finding a positive path forward. It was, as the kids say, very last century.

What is needed is a positive approach founded on a philosophy of social justice for all New Zealanders. It is a journey that needs to be undertaken together. We need to celebrate that we all live in this great country, and we all should, and do, have a stake in its future. The basis of an enduring partnership is present in the New Zealand psyche. We have an innate sense of fairness. Whatever we come up with needs to be built from that basis, and it must be inclusive, and avoid the blame game.

For Maori, as first nation people I think this will mean redress and to benefit from redistribution of resources. It also means acknowledging the diversity of Maori interest and need. One of the good aspects of last week has been the coverage given to Tuhoe and their particular issues and concerns. We need to be able as a nation to take into account the different experiences within Maoridom and respond accordingly.

I am not saying I have all the answers on this. Much of what is being done now must continue to be done, but perhaps in the case of the Settlement process, faster, and broken down into manageable chunks. Need must always lead social policy, but working closely with the communities in need, such as Maori, will be a key to making progress.

I am pleased to see that Treaty issues are going to be present in the new curriculum. I think that creating a new generation of New Zealanders who understand their history, whatever their background, are proud of their ancestors/tipuna and share that knowledge (and their language) with each other, seems like a good step to me. Their parents might like to join in too. It will be a small step, but I believe an important one, in our on-going journey to a socially just New Zealand.