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Maori Party co-leader Marama Fox is challenging iwi to select their young people for a new body that will drive tribal efforts to revive and protect te reo Maori.
Te Matawai, which will be established under the Maori Language (Te Reo Maori) Bill went through the House last night, it will take over distribution of the Ma Te Reo funding for community language efforts which is now handled by the Maori language commission Te Taura Whiri.
Ms Fox says it's critical who goes on Te Matawai, which is why she wants to see rangatahi there.
"The survival of our reo is in their hands. They are the one who are going to have to be speaking it in the future in order for it to thrive. They should be the ones tasked with coming up with the strategies of how to grow and revive our reo with the guidance always of our reo exponents and our kaumatua," she says.
Marama Fox says the bill restores to Maori the rangatiratanga over their language, including giving te reo Maori precedence over English in interpretation of the law.
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