Editorial: Language courtesy paramount

With a quarter-century having now passed since Maori was designated an official language in New Zealand, it came almost as a surprise that, apart from an accused's right to seek to have matters heard in Maori, there had been no standard use of this native language in our District Courts.

That was until this week, with the introduction of bilingual announcements, those by registrars for the start and close of each session.

Sadly, there was a degree of nervousness for some of those charged with making these announcements, if they weren't otherwise regular users of the language, or at least confident that they would get it right first time.

Such concern was not misplaced, for the gallery of a criminal court is not the most forgiving of audiences when those up the front are floundering with their pronunciation.

The officials of our courts, from judges to registrars, from police to lawyers, deal with this every day, most regularly in the pronunciation of defendants' names, which can be the most important announcement of the day.

This is not confined to courtrooms - we'll hear a few real dandies from Olympic Games commentators over the next few weeks - but in the courtroom the consequences of getting it wrong can be serious. Warrants have been issued for the arrest of people who failed to appear, unable to recognise the hash-job someone made calling their name, and people have admitted charges which weren't their own.

But what it's really about, Maori as an official language, and a Maori Language Week that is still needed 25 years after it became so, is respect, one for the language itself, and two for other people.

It can be observed at this point that one of the key issues behind much of the offending which finds a focus in the courtroom is that those in the dock have been through a lifetime of being shown little or no respect. A mispronunciation of the name at such a stressful moment can be like executing one's persona. It is pertinent, then to note the words of Maori Language Commission chief executive Glenis Philip-Barbara, commenting on the steps being taken to address this issue in some way.

"This is a positive move and a useful means by which we can continue to work toward realising the aspirational focus of the Maori Language Act 1987, which speaks of enabling te reo Maori as an ordinary means of communication.

"Our colleagues at the Ministry of Justice who are providing court staff with training and support in the appropriate use of te reo phrases are also due congratulations, and thanks."

Importantly she notes the theme for the week "encourages people to show their regard for the language".

This all raises the issue of how deeply we are as a nation committed to getting it right, and recognising the importance of our most important communication tool, and I'm not referring to pukapuka kanohi (Facebook).

Correct use of language is part of a learning, in which generations of New Zealand missed a beat, as one of the few monolingual countries around. (He says, boasting 13 per cent in School Cert French, sat under protest, without translating anything and without writing a single word in French).

I would have benefited much more had I embarked on each day with a linguistic exercise on Taumatawhakatangihangakoauauotamateaturipukakapikimaungahoronukupokaiwhenuakitanatahu, or would it be easier to just say Taumata?

A certain colleague, for example, admits one thing he hates is the misspelling of his name. "I keep having to tell them it's Moron, with an e-y at the end," he says.

And me? It's the email address. Don't forget the "i", I have to remind people. "You can't leave out the i - I've already lost half an ear."