"Like, if it's really important, they should be saying!" Research with Rangatahi Māori about Local Political Participation

Whakarapopotonga I whakahau te ture Local Government Act 2002 kia whakauru te Maori ki roto i nga whakatakotoranga whakaaro o nga kaunihera-a-rohe. Ka whitu tau mai i taua wa, ka tika kua tae ki te wa ki te ata titiro ki nga hua o aua torangapu, me te whakaaro ano mo nga wawata o nga hapori Maori mo ta ratou urunga ki nga whakaritenga kaunihera-a-rohe. Ko tenei pepa he whakaaturanga o tetahi kaupapa rangahau kua whakaritea hei tirohanga i te whai wahitanga o te Maori i roto i nga potitanga-arohe me etahi atu momo ahuatanga o te whai wahitanga. Tokowha nga momo tangata tuku-poti hei hunga mo nga hui rangahau (focus groups): ko nga Maori e rua tekau ma rima tau, pakeke atu ranei: noho ana ki nga taone, noho ki taiwhenua, me nga Maori tekau ma waru ki te rua tekau ma wha te pakeke e kimi tohu ana, e kimi mahi ana. Ko enei hui rangahau he wahanga no tetahi kaupapa rangahau matua e rapu ana i te hononga o te mohio o te tangata mo te ao kaunihera-a-rohe ki tona whai wahitanga i taua ao. I kitea ko nga hui rangahau he hurahi ki te korero tahi me te rangatahi Maori mo a ratou ake whai wahitanga i nga whakatakotoranga whakaaro kaunihera-a-rohe. Ko te hiahia o tenei pepa ko te whakatau i nga korero kua puta, mai i nga rangatahi Maori e pa ana ki te urunga ki te ao o te kaunihera-a-rohe, me nga whakaaro mo nga hua o te hui rangahau me ona tikanga. Ka whakapuaki tenei pepa i etahi tohutohu ma nga kaunihera-a-rohe ki te whakakore i nga ahua arai i te rangatahi i a ia e tuku poti ana me ona atu momo whai wahitanga. Ko te mea matua ko te whakakaha i nga ara kia piki te whai wahitanga o te rangatahi Maori, kia pai ake te whakauru o ngai Maori ki roto i nga whakatakotoranga whakaaro o nga kauniheraa- rohe a nga tau e heke mai nei. Abstract The Local Government Act 2002 explicitly requires Maori contributions to local authority decision-making processes. Seven years on, it is timely to review the outcomes of the new statutory provisions and to consider Maori aspirations in relation to local political participation. This paper describes research that was carried out to investigate Maori participation in local elections and other forms of decision-making. Focus groups were conducted with four main types of Maori electors: urban Maori and rural Maori aged 25 years and over, and 18-24 years old Maori engaged in tertiary education or the workforce. The focus groups were part of a wider project on local political participation which explored linkages between what people know about local government and their participation in local government. Focus groups (hui rangahau) proved to be a particularly valuable vehicle for engaging with Maori youth (rangatahi Maori) about their participation in local authority decision-making. The purpose of this paper is to report the findings on the views of rangatahi Maori about local political participation, and offers reflections on the utility of the focus group methodology. The research highlights a number of strategies that local authorities can deploy to reduce the barriers to voting and other forms of participation experienced by Maori youth. Improved engagement with Maori youth is vital to ensure that Maori contributions to decision-making processes do not remain under-developed in future.