Kua mahara a Te Taura Whiri i te Reo i te 40 tau mai i te Pitihana mō te Reo Māori

Tēnei Te Taura Whiri i te Reo Māori te whakanui nei i te takanga o te 40 tau mai o te Pitihana mō te Reo Māori

I tēnei rā, kua taka te 40 tau mai o te Pitihana mō te Reo Māori, ā, tēnei Te Taura Whiri i te Reo Māori te maioha atu, te tangi atu nei ki te hunga mātātoa nāna i para te huarahi mō te reo Māori.

I kawea te Pitihana mō te Reo Māori ki te arapiki o te Whare Pāremata i tēnei rā, 40 tau ki muri. 30,000 te hunga nāna i haina, i tautoko i te karanga kia horaina te reo Māori i roto i ngā kura.

‘E kore ā mātou mihi e puritia ki tēnei hunga, ko rātou te matakihi, ko rātou ngā manu mōhio, ko rātou i poropiti kua tae te wā i te tau 1972 kia whakaarahia tēnei take i mua i te motu katoa. Mai i tērā rā ki nāianei kua tupu ko te reo Māori, kua piki tōna mana hei reo whai mana mō Aotearoa,’ te kī a te Tumuaki o Te Taura Whiri i te Reo Māori, a Glenis Philip-Barbara.

Arā ngā āhuatanga kua paiakatia ki te whenua i ēnei rā, ko te Kōhanga Reo tērā, ko te Kura Kaupapa Māori tērā, ko te Whare Kura tērā, ko Whakaata Māori tērā, ko ngā Irirangi Māori tērā, ko ngā wānanga tērā, ko ngā pukapuka reo Māori tērā – i te tau 1972 he moemoeā kau anō.’

Tērā anō hoki ētahi o aua tāngata kua matemate i te rā nei, kua wahangū ngā reo:

Ko Te Ouenuku (Joe) Rene, rātou ko Koro Te Kapunga Matemoana Dewes, ko Hana Te Hemara, ko Syd Jackson, ko Kānona Hēmi Pōtatau, ko Mere Te Anga, ko Alice Coromandel. Moe mai koutou i te moenga tē whakaarahia, i te urunga tē taka.

Arā anō ngā ngārahu o taua ope kei tēnā tōpito, kei tēnā tōpito o te motu e noho ana, ko rātou ngā kaipupuri i ngā kōrero o aua rā, ko rātou hoki i whakamomori ki te kaupapa:

Ko Rangi Nicholson rātou ko Rawiri Paratene, ko Cathy Dewes, ko Rawiri Rangitauira, ko Whaimutu Dewes, ko Joe Te Rito, ko Lee Smith, ko Tame Iti, ko Huirangi Waikerepuru, ko Moana Jackson, ko Andrew Robb, ko Ann Garrick, ko John McCaffery, ko Jamie Schuster.

I a tātou e okioki nei ki te whakaaroaro mō ngā mahi o tēnei rōpū tū ki te pae o te riri, me anga anō tā tātou titiro ki ngā maunga ki ngā pari hei pikinga mō te reo, i ngā tau 40 kei mua i te aroaro, i runga i te manahau, i te whakapono, i te wairua mahitahi.

Ka puta tētahi pakipūmeka mō ngā āhuatanga katoa o tēnei pitihana āpōpō ki Whakaata Māori:
http://www.maoritelevision.com/Default.aspx?tabid=572&pid=8258

Te Taura Whiri i te Reo Māori marks 40 years since Māori Language Petition

On the 40th anniversary of the Māori Language Petition, Te Taura Whiri i te Reo Māori recalls the courage of individuals who led the way for te reo Māori.

The Māori Language Petition was brought to Parliament’s steps 40 years ago today, with 30,000 signatures calling for Māori language to be offered in schools.

‘We remain indebted to the actions of those who had the foresight to place te reo Māori firmly on the national agenda in 1972. Since then te reo Māori has grown to claim its rightful place as an official language of New Zealand,’ says TTWh CE Glenis Philip-Barbara.’

‘There is so much that we take for granted now such as Kōhanga Reo, Kura Kaupapa Māori, Whare Kura, Māori Television, Māori Radio, wānanga, Māori language publications – this was all just dreamed of in 1972.’

Key figures at the time of the petition include those that have passed on:

Te Ouenuku (Joe) Rene, Koro Te Kapunga Matemoana Dewes, Hana Te Hemara, Syd Jackson, Reverend Hēmi Pōtatau, Mere Te Anga, Alice Coromandel.

Other participants located around the country are the holders of the kōrero of the day and continue to inspire us in their tireless work for the kaupapa:

Rangi Nicholson, Rawiri Paratene, Cathy Dewes, Rawiri Rangitauira, Whaimutu Dewes, Joe Te Rito, Lee Smith, Tame Iti, Huirangi Waikerepuru, Moana Jackson, Andrew Robb, Ann Garrick, John McCaffery and Jamie Schuster.

‘As we pause to reflect on the efforts of this dynamic group let us all redouble our efforts for te reo Māori as we look optimistically toward another 40 years of Māori language growth,’

The background to the petition is described in a documentary screening tomorrow on Māori Television:
http://www.maoritelevision.com/Default.aspx?tabid=572&pid=8258

ENDS