Sharples Pita: New Zealand Sign Language Bill — Third Reading 
Sharples Pita: New Zealand Sign Language Bill — Third Reading 
[Volume:630;Page:2592] 
Dr PITA SHARPLES (Co-Leader—Maori Party) 
: 
 Mai i te hinengaro ko te mahara mai i te mahara ko te whakaaro mai i te whakaaro ko te korero a ma te korero ka whakatunga tikanga. From the mind comes the stimulation of memory. Memory stimulates thought. From thoughts come words. From words we construct customs. In this House today we are again recognising custom—the custom of ensuring that the language of the world of silence obtains its proper place in Aotearoa New Zealand. 
The Maori Party is extremely proud to stand today to herald the arrival of the New Zealand Sign Language Bill. The bill provides for the official recognition of New Zealand Sign Language with the purpose of giving it proper status and gives the Deaf access to interpreters for legal proceedings. We are delighted that the bill encompasses the capacity to interpret from Maori and/or English into New Zealand Sign Language. 
We come to this bill recognising the vital significance of language as a means of accessing the world. In our world te reo Maori is the cornerstone of all that is Maori. Accelerating the revival of te reo Maori is therefore an essential focus of the Maori Party. We try to promote and support te reo Maori in all that we do including activities within this House. We believe that the expression of a people—of their uniqueness and beauty—is portrayed through their own language. It is with that thinking in mind that I was delighted to give the thumbs up to a group of Deaf friends whom I met earlier this week at the Lincoln Green Hotel in Waitakere. We embrace the opportunity for the language of this land to be broadened and enriched with the sounds of silence. 
I draw on our association with te reo Maori deliberately as I am aware that Deaf communities internationally have drawn on the experiences of other minority communities. I believe that the Maori Language Act in Aotearoa provides an excellent resource to assist the Deaf community in identifying possible pathways for mobilising and monitoring its agenda. I am hopeful that the progress we have made with te reo Maori in terms of language transition and maintenance will help to strengthen the Deaf community’s pathway forward as a community. 
The bill provides that Government departments should go as far as reasonably practicable to consult with the Deaf community on matters affecting their language and that New Zealand Sign Language should be used to promote Government services and to give information. It is literally about giving voice to the voiceless: kia whai reo te wahangu; to give language to the silent. For Maori Deaf official recognition increases their likelihood of being able to use sign language at hui marae and tangi and increases their access to te reo Maori to customs and to genealogy. 
As past-chairman of Hoani Waititi Marae in west Auckland I am proud of the very long and successful relationship we have enjoyed with the Kelston Deaf Education Centre and we recognise Ruaumoko Marae as a valuable living part of that school. Indeed we pioneered signing in te reo Maori on our marae and at Ruaumoko as we understood the vital importance of enabling access to cultural knowledge transmitted in te reo Maori. In mentioning Hoani Waititi Kelston and Ruaumoko I want to highlight the significance of Deaf communities receiving the right support they need to develop their own community initiatives. 
I want to point out the crucial need for acknowledging the specific communities of Maori Deaf. The National Audiology Centre report shows that of those children who fit audiometric criteria a staggering 49 percent are Maori. Audiometric criteria are defined as the criteria evidenced by children under the age of 18 with congenital hearing loss or with any hearing loss not remediable by medical or surgical means and requiring hearing aids and/or surgical intervention. The acquisition and maintenance of those things for Maori Deaf adults and children and their whanau is therefore essential for their voices to be heard. If we are so overrepresented in the notifications we must also be well represented by Maori teachers signers and interpreters for schools television marae and courts—indeed for our world. Maori Deaf need Maori signers. 
In her speech on the bill’s first reading my colleague Tariana Turia raised concerns the Maori Party has about the inability of the bill to adequately address the issue of trilingual interpreters and to recognise trilingual interpretation—from Maori to sign to English. The debate at the first reading stage through to the Committee stage reiterated the concern of most parties in this Chamber about the demand for interpreters outstripping availability. It is a demand that is particularly urgent for Maori communities. There is a desperate need for competent and qualified trilingual interpreters to ensure access for Maori Deaf into Maori communities where te reo Maori is spoken. 
This bill must be followed with follow-up actions for the urgent need to recruit train and retain Maori student interpreters. Although we fully support the right to use New Zealand Sign Language in court and legal proceedings with a competent and qualified interpreter we want to see the same support provided for Maori to communicate in the world outside the courtroom. We want to ensure that New Zealand Sign Language is a part of our everyday experience. We know that organisations like Te RoopuWaiora and the Deaf Association and the Maori Deaf community will continue to advocate to ensure that Maori Deaf are able to receive that same support. The bill has not addressed the issue of access to services beyond courts including kaupapa Maori services. Proper access to inclusive social housing and health services is critical for the deaf and it is a huge factor in addressing chronic poverty levels. Let us not just stop at the courtroom—why not have access to the whole world? 
There are occasions in this House when the Maori Party has risen to speak on a bill and has found that only one or two submissions has been received. We have questioned quite logically what the level of support should be to justify with any reliability the Government’s initiating such a change. In the case of this bill however a massive 195 submissions were received and all—100 percent the whole lot—were in support. Indeed many thought the bill had not gone far enough. 
Finally the Maori Party wants to congratulate the Minister the Hon Ruth Dyson on taking up the challenge of fostering this bill through the House: tena koe te tuahine e Ruth! As those of us in this House who look back fondly to the 1960s will know Simon and Garfunkel conclude one of their most popular songs with the message: 
The words of the prophets are written on the subway walls 
And tenement halls 
And whispered in the sounds of silence. 
Today in this House the prophecies and the prayers of the Deaf community are coming through to fruition. We are proud to be part of this historic moment.