Don Brash has kicked off Te Wiki o Te Reo Māori with a "blasphemous" takedown of the haka.
"I'm going to say something which is almost blasphemous in New Zealand - I'm not sure that the haka is a good representation of who we are, and if it is, it worries me," the former National Party leader told RadioLIVE's Weekend Life show on Sunday.
"It is basically a war dance, and violence - particularly domestic violence - is one of our major headaches in New Zealand. The haka to me seems to glorify it and that often worries me."
Appearing on the show with Dr Brash was FIRST Union general secretary Robert Reid, who interrupted him.
"Oh, come on. Stop it. Stop it. Stop it right there. Don't giggle about it either. To say the haka glorifies domestic violence, to use the parliamentary term, please withdraw and apologise."
But Dr Brash, founder of lobby group Hobson's Pledge, continued.
"The haka is a war dance. It implies we're going to slaughter our opponents on the rugby field. We often draw our finger across our throat to emphases the point. I think it's overdone."
Listener Sonya texted RadioLIVE to say she was "disgusted" with Dr Brash's comments.
"Our Māori culture contributes to tourism, and don't forget that haka makes New Zealanders feel true, proud and strong."
The response on social media was similar.
"Don Brash is a world renowned expert on inflation targeting and monetary economics," said Twitter user @kilbrniesanders. "He is not on anything else. Not NZ history. Not Tikanga Māori. Not Te Reo. Stop it. Stop inviting him on to be your pet racist. Just stop."
Singer and columnist Lizzie Marvelly said in her opinion, inviting Dr Brash to talk about Te Reo was "a bit like inviting an arsonist along to speak about fire safety week".
"Why do we ask this man to speak on something he has no in-depth knowledge about? Would we ask a geologist... to opine on ballet?"
"His opinions are no more valid than that of anyone selected at random from a rest home," added @KeriHenare.
Is the haka a war dance?
According to the Ministry of Culture and Heritage's Te Ara Encyclopedia of New Zealand website, there are several types of haka - only one of which is a true war dance, the peruperu.
The others include:
- haka taparahi - a ceremonial dance performed without weapons
- tūtūngārahu - a "divinatory" dance performed with weapons to judge whether young men are ready to battle
- ngeri - an "exhortation to rouse a group to achieve its objective", performed without weapons
- puha - a dance performed to raise an alarm.
The famous 'Ka Mate' haka performed by the All Blacks does include lines translated as "You die! We live!", but ironically the haka which features the throat-slitting gesture Dr Brash mentioned - the much-less performed 'Kapo o Pango' - is less violent in its approach.
Te Reo - worth saving?
The start of Māori Language Week this year has been marked by a push from the Greens and Māori Development Minister Nanaia Mahuta to increase the amount of Te Reo in classrooms. The Greens want it compulsory by 2025, while the Government - which is partly made up of NZ First - is settling for "universal availability" in the same timeframe.
Dr Brash doesn't oppose taxpayer money being spent on teaching the language to children, but warns it will have to come at the expense of something else.
"You can't just add one more thing without taking something out. There's almost nothing less valuable to most Kiwi kids than learning Te Reo."
He said the emphasis should remain on English because "far too many Māori kids... don't speak or read or write English proficiently".
Rather than compulsion for students to learn Te Reo or schools to offer it, he backs National MP Nikki Kaye's Education (Strengthening Second Language Learning in Primary and Intermediate Schools) Amendment Bill, which will make it compulsory for all schools to offer at least one other language than English - but it doesn't have to be Māori.
Ms Mahuta wants to hear Kiwis using Te Reo in everyday life "when they go to Pak'nSave, McDonald's, Countdown".
"I want people to celebrate that as a country we are unique, and we're proud because we always punch above our weight - and that the language is a clear identifier of our unique personality and characteristics."
Domestic Abuse charity Shine declined to comment on the matter.
Newshub.
