Te Reo champion retires from union duties

Media release
11 June 2015
Tertiary Education Union - Te Hautū Kahurangi o Aotearoa

Te Reo champion retires from union duties

TEU kaumātua Dr Huirangi Waikerepuru (Taranaki and Ngāpuhi) will retire from his union commitments tomorrow, aged 86.

Waikerepuru is best known for his lifelong commitment to protecting and promoting te reo Māori. He was instrumental in getting the government to recognise te reo Māori as an official language, in lobbying for the creation of Te Mangai Paho and in establishing Māori radio stations and Māori television.

But his commitment to unions has also been immense. He served almost 30 years as an active member of TEU and its predecessor unions ASTE and ATTI.

TEU is holding a celebration for Waikerepuru on the 13th floor of Education House in Wellington at midday.

TEU’s Te Pou Tuarā, Lee Cooper, says Waikerepuru’s retirement will be a ‘happy-sad day’.

“I’m happy he is able to retire properly from the sector after his decades of work. But we will miss his huge body of knowledge in Te Ao Kōhatu, wisdom of te reo Māori me ōna tikanga, and his calming influence.”

Cooper says Waikerepuru pioneered the Māori-specific provisions that are in many of TEU’s collective agreements and he contributed to countless union policies and Government submissions - notably the union’s strong stance on the foreshore and seabed legislation and active promotion of Te Reo Māori.

Former CTU president Ross Wilson says Waikerepuru made an outstanding contribution as a key leader in the fight for te reo Māori as an official language, and its promotion particularly through Māori radio.

“The union movement was privileged to have the benefit of his wisdom and extensive knowledge of tikanga as a kaumātua and adviser.”

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