Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade chief executive Chris Seed has come under fire from Te Pāti Māori for his decision to remove te reo Māori from government communications.
A leak last week showed his message to staff to remove te reo Māori headings - which included an introduction and ending all in te reo Māori.
“The ministry is happy to sell our culture and language overseas while showing no respect for it at home,” Te Pāti Māori co-leader Rawiri Waititi said today.
“We have just landed on the other side of an election campaign that was very hostile toward te reo Māori,” co-leader Debbie Ngarewa-Packer said.
Waititi said that he was putting “every government department on notice”.
It’s not yet clear what attitude the new government, once formed, will take toward the use of te reo Māori across government departments.
Last week Te Kaunihera Māori o Aotearoa (New Zealand Māori Council) put the ministry on notice, and is still seeking a formal response from Chris Seed.
