March 05, 2024
Hui value needs wider understanding
A leading Māori academic says putting tikanga and Māori society in the school system would help all New Zealanders get a deeper understanding of Te Tiriti and its intended partnership.
Victoria University head of Māori studies Maria Bargh along with Annie Te One have looked at how tikanga Māori is taught in law schools in the wake of a 2021 decision by the New Zealand Council of Legal Education to make it mandatory.
She says it can give people a richer sense of what is going on.
“We see all sorts of rūnanga going on, all sorts of, we had the hui-ā-motu at Tūrangawaewae. Those sorts of occurrences are all part of our rich Māori political history and present. That world continues and I think it’s important that across our communities we build that understanding that this vibrant Māori political world continues to exist with these unique forms,” Dr Bargh says