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| ISBN-13: | 9781775581048 |
|---|---|
| Publisher: | Auckland University Press |
| Publication date: | 10/01/2001 |
| Sold by: | Barnes & Noble |
| Format: | eBook |
| Pages: | 64 |
| File size: | 2 MB |
About the Author
Dame Dr Joan Metge was born in 1930. A trained anthropologist, she is particularly famous for her outstanding promotion of cross-cultural awareness. She has published significant books and articles on cross-cultural communication and on Maori history and society. She was awarded the Royal Society of New Zealand’s inaugural Te Rangi Hiroa Medal in 1997 for her outstanding scientific research in the social sciences and, in 2006, won the third Asia-Pacific Mediation Forum Peace Prize, previously won by José Ramos-Horta.
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Korero Tahi
Talking Together
By Joan Metge, Malcolm Evans
Auckland University Press
Copyright © 2001 Joan MetgeAll rights reserved.
ISBN: 978-1-77558-104-8
CHAPTER 1
TURNING VISION INTO PRACTICE
The seed is sown
One wintry night in 1961 I went with Hoani Waititi to a public meeting in west Auckland to speak in support of the Maori Education Foundation, newly established to address the high percentage of young Maori leaving school without qualifications. As the Foundation's chief architect, Hoani insisted on its being a co-operative enterprise, involving Maori and Pakeha equally. (In this context, the word Pakeha is used as the counterpart of Maori, encompassing all non-Maori New Zealanders.) Such a wastage of human potential (Hoani argued) affected the nation as a whole, not Maori alone, and all of us must contribute to the solution. Under his direction the organising committee was made up of equal numbers of Maori and Pakeha and so were the speaking teams sent out to spread the message. The Foundation's funds were drawn from both Maori and Pakeha sources, subsidised by the government.
At that first meeting, Hoani invited me to speak first. After I had read a carefully prepared paper full of facts, figures and reasoned argument, he stood up and, noteless, told the story of his life. At every turn his account gave personal meaning to the abstract points I had made, hammering them home. Working in tandem for the first time, I was exhilarated by the way we complemented and took fire from each other.
That night I learnt a lesson I have never forgotten. Hoani argued that as Maori and Pakeha we are bound together in one nation by the Treaty of Waitangi and by our shared history. He made that argument live for me by demonstrating how rewarding it was to work together for a common purpose. When Maori and Pakeha respect and trust each other, recognising our differences, we achieve our goals more effectively than we could alone, learn much that enriches us and have a great deal of fun in the process. Despite the seriousness of the subject, we laughed a lot that night in west Auckland.
Hoani Waititi's vision of Maori and Pakeha working together as equal partners and his success in implementing it in the early days of the Maori Education Foundation were all the more remarkable because the official policy of assimilation was still largely in place, the Treaty of Waitangi was considered of marginal importance by the government and most Pakeha, and opportunities for Maori to manage their affairs and practise their cultural ways were confined to private space in homes and marae. Fortunately, Hoani was not alone in his vision. A similar spirit animated the Maori Leadership Conferences held mainly between 1959 and 1965, organised and sponsored jointly by Maori communities and the Departments of University Extension in Auckland and Wellington.
Gains – and losses
In the 1970s and 1980s a new wave of articulate Maori leaders (including many 'graduates' of the Maori Education Foundation and Maori Leadership Conferences) mounted a challenge to Pakeha domination which, with support from sympathetic Pakeha, effected major changes in Maori–Pakeha relations. The Treaty of Waitangi was brought to national consciousness as our nation's founding document. The government recognised the validity of Maori grievances and embarked on the process of redress through the Waitangi Tribunal and direct negotiation. Pakeha generally became more aware and respectful of Maori culture and there was a significant increase in the number of Maori words used without translation as part of the general New Zealand vocabulary. Maori pioneered initiatives as self-managing service providers in education and health. Publication of the report Puao-Te-Ata-Tu ushered in changes in the way government departments related to Maori. Government departments and other public institutions (such as schools and libraries) added Maori to their English names and signs, incorporated the Treaty of Waitangi into their mission statements, appointed Maori cultural advisers and commissioned Maori art works for display in public spaces. Other organisations, including churches, museums and art galleries, reformed their constitutions to give Maori rights of self-governance and access to power at the highest level. Recognition of Maori practices was built into several new laws.
Yet, in spite of remarkable advances, Maori and Pakeha are still a long way from achieving Hoani Waititi's vision of partnership on a national scale. Over the last ten years ground has actually been lost in some areas, and promising developments have been stalled or sidetracked. Relations between Maori and Pakeha are not improved by the news media, whose practitioners tend to highlight tensions and conflicts, at the expense of stories of cooperation and achievement.
In the late 1980s and 1990s technological change demanding ever more advanced skills, coupled with economic restructuring and globalisation of the market economy, disadvantaged Maori as a group compared with Pakeha, so that once again the government is developing strategies designed to 'close the gaps' in education, employment and health. Although Pakeha generally use an increased range of Maori words, they do so with seriously restricted meanings, missing their full richness and contextual variation. Literary and artistic taonga (treasures) such as the haka and the koru are adopted as general icons with limited understanding of their significance and reapplied in ways that distort their original meaning and purpose.
Ironically, the increased national recognition and respect accorded Maori and Maori ways lead to misunderstanding and separation as often as they do to understanding and cooperation. Compensating for 150 years of domination, many articulate Maori insist on exclusive rights to practise and control the tikanga (right ways) inherited from their ancestors. Unwilling to educate Pakeha in Maori ways themselves, they are nevertheless quick to rebuke them for insensitivity or mistakes, making no allowance for ignorance, anxiety or learning difficulties. Pakeha with a good understanding of Maori language and culture often hold back from pursuing their interest out of respect and sympathy for what Maori have suffered, while many who would like to learn more are put off by fear of rebuff.
Although it is now common for Maori cultural practices such as karanga, powhiri, karakia and the ritual lifting of tapu to be included in the planning of public occasions, they are typically additions rather than an integral part of the proceedings, 'clip-ons' carried out by Maori according to tikanga and in the Maori language. Some Maori speakers, mindful of the traditional value of arohanui ki te tangata (consideration for others), provide translations and explanations, but the majority insist on Maori only. As a result most non-Maori sit through such rituals without understanding and fail to appreciate either their symbolism or their psychological insight. Lack of understanding breeds boredom, resentment and impatience with Maori aspirations.
In other areas of common life, where Maori and Pakeha work together, whether on committees, councils, commissions and boards, or in recreational settings, it is usual to use procedures and language derived from the cultural tradition of the Pakeha majority. To meet the needs of changing times, public and private organisations repeatedly import concepts and processes from overseas – in the fields of family relations and restorative justice, for example – overlooking or discounting those that are alive and well in our own country in the Maori community. Although there is greater recognition of their right to manage themselves and their own affairs, Maori are still expected to conform to the majority pattern, to cope with moving between two cultural worlds where Pakeha generally live comfortably in one.
Understanding the Treaty
Part of the problem has its roots in continuing arguments over interpretation of the Treaty of Waitangi. These arguments arise when commentators focus on particular aspects of the Treaty at the expense of others: on the English text without reference to the Maori, on the Maori text without reference to the English, or on only one of the three articles. Because of the difficulty of translating British legal concepts into Maori, there are significant differences between the English text (identified as the Treaty by most Pakeha) and the Maori text, which was read to and signed by the Maori signatories, few of whom understood English. The three articles are not alternatives but complement and build on each other. To understand the spirit of the Treaty, it is important to consider it as a whole that is greater than the sum of its parts. As such, it is a covenant agreement by which two peoples committed themselves to forming one nation, living and working together in peace, justice and interdependence. Moreover, it is a continuing covenant, passed on from generation to generation of New Zealand citizens, encompassing all who have been integrated into the nation after settling here, as well as the descendants of Treaty signatories.
Under the Treaty, it is right and proper that Maori be supported in pursuing and developing their ancestral tikanga in their own way and spaces, but it is also essential that Maori and Pakeha (using that term in its widest sense) work together as partners to create a national life, a national culture, to which all contribute, in which all feel they have a share, with which all feel comfortable. Revising the constitution may go some way to achieving this but it will be ineffective unless accompanied or, preferably, preceded by changes in practice. If we are to realise the vision of partnership implicit in the Treaty, we need more effective communication, more sharing, more cross-fertilisation in our public life, as well as mutual recognition of rights. In particular, we need to recognise the value of drawing on the Maori as well as the European cultural tradition as a source of inspiration for our common culture.
Managing discussion
An area of particular importance for cross-cultural communication and cooperation is that of group discussion, whether it is aimed at exploring a subject or coming to a decision. At present, when people of different ethnic backgrounds meet in discussion, it is usual to use only the English language and the rules familiar to the Pakeha majority. As a result, members of minority groups often feel at a disadvantage, fail to contribute to their full capacity or become aggressively assertive. We need a procedure that is acceptable and enjoyable to all.
Maori long ago borrowed committee procedure from Pakeha, applied it to the management of business meetings and subtly changed it in the process, but Pakeha have generally failed to recognise the values and rules governing discussion in Maori settings as a source worth tapping. They have remained monocultural in this context and have imposed their mono-cultural practice on Maori. Ethnocentricity aside, this has happened partly because the tikanga governing discussion on the marae are not codified and available in packaged form; instead, Maori internalise them in the process of growing up in Maori communities, learning by doing. Once these tikanga are brought to consciousness, it is clear that they are rooted in a deep understanding of human psychology. When applied by skilled practitioners, they are highly effective in achieving their aims. They are a resource Pakeha have been foolish to neglect.
This book draws on that rich resource to develop a procedure for managing group discussion in general settings where Maori from many iwi and Pakeha from many ethnic groups meet to talk about common concerns. I have named this procedure korero tahi – talking together, the opposite of talking past each other.
Korero tahi procedure aims to create an environment that is comfortable and empowering to all participants in a discussion, an environment where none feel disadvantaged or intimidated by rules, words or actions they do not understand, and where all are accorded equal dignity and respect. To achieve this aim, discussion organisers must spell out the rules of korero tahi, explain its source and purposes and act as facilitators, not directors.
The rules of korero tahi balance rights with responsibilities. They guarantee participants the right to express themselves in the language of their choice – but require them to provide a translation or paraphrase for the benefit of those who do not understand the chosen language. Korero tahi encourages participants to air grievances and hostile feelings – but also to accept mediation and negotiate settlement. And, finally, korero tahi requires participants to leave behind what was negative in the discussion, taking away only what is constructive.
Respecting the Maori source
As a minority group with a long history of resisting assimilation, Maori are understandably sensitive to the threat of having their cultural taonga appropriated, taken over by outsiders without authority, but they have been more than generous in sharing them with Pakeha who have proved themselves respectful and worthy of trust. Because Maori are justified in fearing appropriation, it needs to be emphasised that korero tahi has been developed with authority and under Maori guidance. It is based on five decades of observation in Maori settings, lengthy discussions with Maori experts on the subject, and cooperation with Maori partners in workshops designed to teach non-Maori about Maori ways of thinking and acting. In particular I acknowledge my debt to Hoani Waititi (Te Whanau-a-Apanui), Matiu Te Hau (Whakatohea and Nga Puhi), Wiremu Parker (Ngati Porou), Tawhao Tioke (Tuhoe), Derek Asher (Tuwharetoa), Keri Kaa (Ngati Porou), Haami Piripi (Te Rarawa) and Tukaki Waititi (Whanau-a-Apanui and Ngati Hine of Nga Puhi). These experts in tikanga Maori all contributed to and approved the development of korero tahi at different stages. Those still living (the last five named) have given their approval and support to its presentation in this work, including the choice of name.
To continue the pattern of cross-cultural cooperation thus established, those who use korero tahi procedure are asked to adopt four guiding principles:
• to acknowledge the Maori cultural tradition as the source and inspiration of korero tahi;
• to work to extend their own understanding of tikanga Maori as those tikanga operate in Maori contexts;
• to involve both Maori and Pakeha in any adaptation of the tikanga governing discussion for use in general settings;
• to arrange whenever possible for Maori and Pakeha to work together in partnership as organisers and facilitators.
As a way of managing group discussion, korero tahi is at once rooted in Aotearoa New Zealand and available for general use in a variety of settings. It is intended not to displace but to widen the options available to New Zealanders, recognising and catering for cultural diversity.
In each of the following sections, in the spirit of the above principles, I first set out the values, rules and practices of the Maori way of managing discussion, and then I do the same for korero tahi, showing how those Maori values, rules and practices (the Maori pattern) can be adapted for use in a wide variety of general situations, public and private.
First, a note on use of the shorthand phrase, the Maori pattern. In Maori contexts, members of different iwi insist on the independent identity of each, emphasising (even exaggerating) differences in dialect and tikanga. From a wider perspective, however, these differences appear as essentially variations on basic themes that are common to and valued by all who identify as Maori. The division into and structure of iwi is itself one of these basic themes. Others are the Maori language, the institution of the marae and the set of tikanga governing discussion, which are closely associated with the marae. For the purposes of this work, it is appropriate to focus primarily on the Maori pattern common to all iwi. The existence of tribal variations will, however, be noted where relevant.
CHAPTER 2SETTINGS, RULES AND THE USE OF SPACE
The Maori pattern
Maori collectively see the marae as the appropriate venue for debating issues of all kinds, especially at family and community level. Discussion is an integral part of every gathering held on a marae, whether the community is meeting on its own or entertaining visitors, and whatever the publicly announced reason for coming together. When Maori meet for discussion in other places, they transform them into the likeness of a marae by their use of space and application of marae rules of debate.
Discussion is so closely associated with the marae that the rules used in its management are commonly referred to in English as marae procedure, in conscious opposition to committee procedure derived from Pakeha sources. This description is not completely accurate. Marae procedure in Maori is nga tikanga o te marae, a phrase that covers all aspects of marae protocol, including behaviour in the kitchen and toilets as well as on the marae and in the meeting house. In Maori the rules governing discussion are properly identified as nga tikanga korerorero.
(Continues...)
Excerpted from Korero Tahi by Joan Metge, Malcolm Evans. Copyright © 2001 Joan Metge. Excerpted by permission of Auckland University Press.
All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
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Table of Contents
Contents
Half Title,Title Page,
Dedication,
Foreword,
Turning Vision into Practice,
Settings, Rules and the Use of Space,
Getting off to a Good Start,
The Work of Discussion: Modes and General Rules,
Korero Tahi: Going Round the Circle,
Korero Tahi: Criss-Cross Exchange,
Korero Tahi: Passing the Stick,
Decision Making,
The Use of Songs and Humour,
Summing Up – Saying Farewell,
Not the Last Word,
Notes,
References and Reading List,
INSERTS,
Korero Tahi in a Conference Context,
Korero Tahi in a Marae Setting,
An Alternative Welcome Ceremony,
Korero Tahi: Guidelines For Facilitators Working with Small Groups,
Talking About Partnership,
Copyright,