Members of Te Rūnanga Nui, the Waitangi Tribunal and the Ministry of Education being welcomed onto Hoani Waititi Marae. Photo: Pokere Paewai / RNZ
The first week of Waitangi Tribunal hearings into alleged inequities which prevent Māori from exercising control and authority over te reo Māori - and the way it is taught and learned - has drawn to a close.
The urgent claim was brought by Te Rūnanga Nui o ngā Kura Kaupapa Māori o Aotearoa, the body which oversees kura kaupapa Māori.
Te Rūnanga Nui is seeking the Waitangi Tribunal's intervention to ensure kura kaupapa Māori can continue to express their tino rangatiratanga.
Earlier this week members of the rūnanga, the tribunal and the Ministry of Education were welcomed on to Hoani Waititi Marae in West Auckland, site of the first kura kaupapa Māori opened in 1985.
Inside the wharenui, Ngā Tumanako, the tribunal panel heard evidence from kaiako, former students, academics and parents over the course of the week.
Lead claimant Dr Cathy Dewes said the Crown and the Ministry of Education need to see the benefits of kura kaupapa.
"Me marama pai Te Tāhuhu, te Karauna ki te ātaahua o tēnei kaupapa te kura kaupapa Māori Aho Matua, me tōna pai me te nui ō ngā hua ka puta kia tātau te iwi Māori."
The tribunal heard of how kura kaupapa Māori have struggled with a lack of understanding, and therefore support, from the Ministry of Education.
Co-chair of Te Rūnanga Nui, Rawiri Wright, said for a long time the Crown has tried to assimilate kura kaupapa into the mainstream. He said the authority over kura kaupapa Māori should be in the hands of those who have experience teaching it.
"Ehara i a rātau te mana ki te tohutohu mai ki te ao Māori me pēnei, me pēnā, me pērā mō te āhuatanga o ngā kaupapa e whakaako atu ki ngā tamariki, kua roa rātau e ngana ana te pērā."
Members of Te Rūnanga Nui, the Waitangi Tribunal and the Ministry of Education being welcomed onto Hoani Waititi Marae. Photo: Pokere Paewai / RNZ
Standing as a representative of kura of the Far North, Hilda Halkyard-Harawira said kura should be allowed to design the plan for their future.
The government needs to enable the establishment of more kura in the Far North to keep up with demand, she said.
"I roto i te Tai Tokerau we want you to plan that we need at least five new kura kaupapa... in the next 10 years. So buy the land now, hoko tērā whenua, whakahoki mai to mātau whenua."
Mahanga Pihama, a graduate of Te Kura Kaupapa Māori o Hoani Waititi Marae, warned against letting the government be the sole arbiter of Māori education.
He did this by adapting the words of a mōteatea, a chant from Hoani Waititi's own champion Kapa Haka group Ngā Tumanako.
"Kei te whare he rā e taka e riro ai mā te karauna, mā te kawanatanga, mā Te Tahūhū o te Mātauranga tātau e whāngai ki tō tātau reo, ki ā tātau tikanga, ki tō tātau taonga Te Aho Matua."
Pihama told the tribunal the current school buildings were old and not fit for purpose for the kura's 260 students.
Under current regulations kura often can't access funding for large buildings like gymnasiums because they do not meet the threshold of 400 students, he said.
The Waitangi Tribunal listens to evidence from Te Rūnanga Nui. Photo: Pokere Paewai / RNZ
On Friday the tribunal were shown the current buildings at Te Kura Kaupapa Māori o Hoani Waititi Marae.
Raukura or kura kaupapa graduate, Te Ataakura Sharland-Pewhairangi, said looking back at her schooling, she realised they didn't have the same resources as other schools.
She hoped the world her children lived in would be better than what she had growing up.
"Kia pai noa ake te ao o aku tamariki i tēnei te ao i nōhia e matau, koira te hiahia nui kia tipu tonu kia whanake tonu te kaupapa, ka mutu kia whai wāhi ā tātau tamariki Māori katoa huri huri te motu ki tēnei kaupapa. Koira the hiahia nui."
Sharland-Pewhairangi said she hoped all Māori children would have the opportunity to experience kura kaupapa Māori in the future.
The next set of hearings will take place on 8 May at Te Kura Kaupapa Māori o Ngā Mokopuna in Wellington. Further hearings were planned over the next few months.
After all the hearings are finished, the Waitangi Tribunal will then deliberate before releasing its final report and recommendations to the government.
