70 S e cti o n One – General participation. For Mäori, the Government decided to common good; and respect for themselves, others and establish an independent statutory board, which would human rights. consist of up to nine members, with up to seven of these coming from mana whenua groups. The new council can, however, establish Mäori seats under existing legislation if it chooses. Policy initiatives In addition to services such as Language Line and the telephone interpreting service, and programmes such as Building Bridges, the Office of Ethnic Affairs is implementing a range of new initiatives to address the challenges of diversity. These include: • collaboration across government agencies to develop Following the introduction of the new curriculum, there is a need for teacher training and support as well as educational resources to deliver these components. Linguistic diversity The first Action Plan for Human Rights in New Zealand (2005–10) identified a long-term outcome for language: “by the bicentenary of the signing of the Treaty of Waitangi in 2040, New Zealand is well established as a bilingual nation, and communities are supported in the use of other languages”. A series of actions were identified in order to achieve this goal. Since 2005, a robust statistical data, reporting and monitoring range of initiatives have been implemented in order in mechanisms on ethnic communities relation to these actions. These include: • collaboration across government agencies to inform policy advice on immigration, settlement, health, economics and civic participation • developing a national database for interpreters • facilitating business forums to build constructive relationships between business communities, government organisations and business councils • working with government agencies and private organisations to develop, train and maintain a culturally diverse workforce. Education for diversity A revised New Zealand curriculum was introduced in 2008. It includes the following core principles: • The Treaty – acknowledging the principles of the Treaty of Waitangi, and the bicultural foundations of Aotearoa New Zealand. All students must have the opportunity to acquire knowledge of te reo Mäori me öna tikanga. • Cultural diversity – reflecting New Zealand’s cultural diversity and valuing the histories and traditions of all its people. • Inclusion – being non-sexist, non-racist, and non- • New Zealand Sign Language (NZSL) became New Zealand’s third official language and the first NZSL week took place. • A ‘Statement on language policy’ was developed as part of the New Zealand Diversity Action Programme. • Learning languages became a core learning area in the new New Zealand curriculum. • The Mäori Language Act and Te Taura Whiri i te Reo Mäori turned 20. • A survey of the health of te reo Mäori showed improvements. • The Mäori Language Strategy was reviewed. • The Te Reo television channel was launched. • The Pacific Languages Strategy was initiated. • Samoan Language Week was launched and increasingly celebrated. • New community language resources for Cook Island Mäori, Niuean and Tokelauan were developed. • A national approach to translation and interpreting services was investigated. discriminatory; ensuring that students’ identities, Resourcing remains a challenge, particularly in the languages, abilities and talents are recognised and provision of teachers with high degrees of fluency in affirmed and that their learning needs are addressed. te reo. The timely provision of information – particu- Throughout the curriculum, students are also to be encouraged to value diversity, as found in our different cultures, languages and heritages; equity, through fairness and social justice; community and participation for the larly relating to health and government – in a range of community languages is similarly challenging. Englishonly polices in the workplace have repeatedly been the cause of complaints to the Human Rights Commission.