Meriana Johnsen
South vs West battle in Tāmaki Makaurau
It's looking like South versus West Auckland in the battle for the Tāmaki Makaurau electorate.
Labour's Peeni Henare has held the seat for the previous two terms - winning it by an almost 20 percent… Audio
Far North charity says emergency housing situation desperate
An emergency housing charity in the Far North says whanau are being forced to stay up to a year because there's nowhere for them to go.
The social housing waitlist is ballooning in the region… Audio
Push to get parents speaking te reo Māori at home with tamariki
Those working to make te reo the first language of tamariki Māori are pushing for it to be spoken routinely at home.
The Māori Language Commission is aiming for a quarter of Māori children under 7… Audio
Proposal on Māori, Pasifika medical school limits 'disturbing'
A prominent medical organisation has called a proposal by Otago University to impose caps on special medical school admissions for Māori and Pasifika "deeply disturbing".
The Royal Australasian… Audio
Te Waonui for 4 September 2020
Pressure mounts on the Otago medical school to front up on a proposed cap to its Maori Entry pathway -- regional covid-19 modelling shows over 13-hundred Maori and Pasifika would die in Counties… Audio
Arguments for and against Ellis appeal continuing revisted
RNZ's reporter, Meriana Johnsen, was at the Supreme Court hearing when the arguments for and against the appeal proceeding were made.
She spoke to Māni Dunlop about the case. Audio
'Matter of time' before police AI leads to Māori or pacific person's wrongful arrest - expert
A Māori specialist in artificial intelligence says it's only a matter of time before a Māori or Pasifika person is wrongfully arrested because of a false match on facial recognition software.
Police… Audio
Tauranga Council votes to establish Māori ward
Tauranga City Council has narrowly voted in favour of establishing a Māori ward at the next local elections in 2022.
There was haka and applause in the public gallery as councillors voted 6 to 4 with… Audio
Te Waonui for 16 August 2020
Coming up on Te Waonui - the Prime Minister announces that Auckland will remain at alert level three and the rest of the country at level two - iwi and Maori health providers re-mobilise in the face… Audio
Mongrel Mob chapter head to give evidence to Waitangi Tribunal
The head of the Hastings Mongrel Mob chapter is among those giving evidence at an urgent Waitangi Tribunal hearing into the removal of tamariki Māori from their whānau by Oranga Tamariki.
The… Audio
National MPs change their tune on Maori electoral rolls
National party MPs are no longer singing from the same song sheet on whether Maori should be allowed to switch electoral rolls. There have been renewed calls from frustrated Maori who are being… Audio
Family court system confusing, broken - whānau Māori
Whānau Māori who are going through the family court say they're being ignored by judges, and left to navigate a confusing system without support.
The experiences of 36 people - ranging from parents… Audio
Te Waonui for week ending Friday 24 July 2020
A woman says she's caught a racist landlord redhanded, after being rejected from a property for being Maori, there are renewed calls for Maori to be able to change electoral rolls more frequently, and… Audio
Māori want more chances to switch electoral rolls
Māori trying to switch electoral rolls ahead of the election are frustrated they won't be able to do so until 2024.
It's led to renewed calls from the Electoral Commission to allow Māori to switch… Audio
Ihumātao protectors gather to mark a year since eviction notice
A leader of the Ihumātao land occupation says while there's no resolution yet, protestors are still winning as there are no police and houses on the land.
Whānau and supporters gathered for a karakia… Video, Audio
Te Waonui a TMK for week ending Friday 19 June 2020
Māori health experts say a major plan to overhaul the health system is neither brave or transformative, a Tainui hapu is demanding to know why they were not properly consulted about a decision to… Audio
Hapū demands answers over food pit consultation
A Ngaruawāhia hapū is demanding to know why they were not properly consulted about a decision to destroy 300-year-old food pits.
Excavation of the rua, which give the town its name, stopped in early… Audio
Woman attacked on Mt Albert says it was racially motivated
Police are investigating a racist attack on a wahine Maori with a moko kauae who was walking Owairaka, Mount Albert. Ngahina Hohaia says she was subjected to racial abuse, and smacked on the arm by an… Audio
Bay of Islands locals, hapū vow to fight housing development
Hapū and locals of a small Bay of Islands town are vowing to fight a plan to build seventeen houses on land they want protected for a public park.
The commerical arm of the Far North council got… Audio
Kaikōura prospects grim as tourism dries up
Kaikōura businesses are just managing to scrape by but prospects for the largely tourist town are grim if the border doesn't open to international visitors by summer.
Local leaders are worried about… Audio