Kia ora koutou Mo te wiki ō te reo Māori!
The Aotearoa New Zealand Association of Social Workers (ANZASW) supports the celebration of te wiki ō te reo (Maori
Language week).
The Association supports Te Reo Maori as a a recognised language and is our countries indigenous native language and is
our point of difference with other countries. The Association supports all efforts to return the language to its
rightful place as our native indigenous language as a centre point for all New Zealanders who call Aotearoa home.
ANZASW acknowledges the systematic way that Aotearoa New Zealand’s indigenous culture was suppressed historically,
including through deliberate efforts to discourage the use of Te Reo Maori. We support promoting the more widespread use
of the language is an important part of efforts to reverse the damage wrought by colonial dispossession and tackling
structural discrimination against Tangata Whenua.
The Association supports the future opportunities where more dedicated Te Reo teachers will be required to support the
education system from primary school onwards where the aspiration is result that more New Zealanders will become fluent
in the native language of Aotearoa.
We welcome and support the more widespread use of Te Reo by State own agencies and where they use various media
platforms where the machines of government play such a key role in shaping and framing political discourse. It is
important that the use of Te Reo in these contexts is used to support Te Reo Maori develop and honours the founding
document Te Tiriti of the binding partnership between the Crown and Tangata Whenua
As social workers working in Aotearoa we ensure that in our practice particularly with Tangata Whenua the importance of
Te Reo Maori in our social work practice and the importance of Te Reo Maori with the clients and colleagues we work
with. Te Reo Maori is a critical component to be considered as part of the key competencies in registration of being
able to engage and work with Tangata Whenua. ANZASW is committed to the principles of protection, participation and
partnership with Tangata Whenua; and look forward to the future of seeing a bilingual Aotearoa New Zealand..
Kia Kaha te Reo Māori!