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The Human Rights Commission has called out an online survey on the TVNZ site for posing leading and biased questions about Maori.
The state broadcaster says the Kiwimeter is the biggest survey of national identity ever undertaken with thousands of New Zealanders taking part.
It’s created by Canadian company Vox Pop Labs with input from New Zealand political scientists.
One question asks people to respond to the statement ‘Maori should not receive any special treatment’.
The commission says that’s a leading statement demonstrating a clear bias that Maori already receive ‘special treatment’.
Another question about how much control should Maori have over their own affairs effectively asks whether Maori New Zealanders deserve fewer human rights than other New Zealanders.
Race Relations Commissioner Dame Susan Devoy says it is unlikely a question ‘How much control should Pakeha have over their own affairs?’ would have made it onto television screens.
She says while the commission supports open discussion about national identity, it but urges the Kiwimeter team to think carefully about where their leading questions are taking respondents.
Copyright © 2016, UMA Broadcasting Ltd: www.waateanews.com
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