Meng Foon: Why we need affirmative action for minority groups

Tuesday, 26 October 2021

Meng Foon, the Race Relations Commissioner, responds to the anger he encounters over efforts to improve the equity of Māori and other groups.

OPINION: We all should be treated fairly, with respect and without racial discrimination. However, there comes a time when ethnicity needs to be considered in order to address ongoing inequalities that have been created through past discrimination.

Some people have expressed anger at my support of targeted actions to boost equity and elevate Māori and other ethnic minority groups within Aotearoa.

Such measures do not replace programmes for the general population, so I wonder if the queries come from a position of uncertainty regarding what is acceptable, or worse, from a lack of empathy or willingness to address some real needs in our communities.

Equity measures seek to elevate Māori and other ethnic minority groups to address the many disparities that affect their lives. These disadvantages have emerged because of the long-standing effects of colonisation, where tangata whenua rights promised in Te Tiriti o Waitangi have been breached by the Crown.

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This has upheld a legacy of structural racism which continues to impede tangata whenua as well as other ethnic minorities.

The UN Declaration of the Rights of Indigenous Peoples also underscores the government’s obligations to ensure tangata whenua can enjoy fully their fundamental rights, including the right to be equal to all other peoples.

Jess Berentson-Shaw, whose research has highlighted the links between educational achievement and racism factors.

We are guided by legislation and the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination on what is unacceptable. It’s unlawful to discriminate on the ground of colour, race, ethnicity, or national origin in areas of public life. We all have the right to not be harassed because of our colour or anything related to race or ethnicity.

It’s really about common-sense and respect. But then why is some discrimination allowed?

Turuki Healthcare in Mangere is one example of Māori providers responding to the specific needs of their people during the pandemic.

Both the Human Rights Act and the New Zealand Bill of Rights Act recognise that some groups may need a customised approach to help them achieve equality with others. Historical and systemic issues often have placed these groups at a distinct disadvantage.

These special measures have been called “affirmative action” or “positive discrimination”, highlighting the constructive and practical nature of their purpose. Groups that may receive such measures include those categorised by gender, disability, or ethnicity.

For example, university targeted admission schemes provide alternative pathways for Māori, Pacific, LGBTQIA+ and disabled communities to address equity issues across a number of disciplines. Projects that improve access to services for our disabled communities are important, as are mitigation strategies around pay equity, closing the gender pay gap and targeted health programmes aimed to stop people falling through the cracks.

They are not discriminatory if they help people achieve equality.

There are countless examples which indicate these special measures are needed. Unicef figures show our education system is one of the worst among developed countries when it came to equality.

In 2018 researcher Jess Berenston-Shaw found Māori and Pacific children were over-represented in lower educational figures with lower-socio-economic households and racism factors that impacted this.

This month the Tertiary Education Commission gave universities and polytechnics 10 years to end long-standing disparities between the rates of Māori and Pacific students who pass and others.

The Covid-19 pandemic has also highlighted issues in the health sector, with Māori and Pacific communities at greater risk from the coronavirus because of significant and long-standing health inequities.

Inequity is even more important to address when you consider the distinct life expectancy differences between Māori and Pacific communities and others. The former groups are expected to live between five and eight fewer years than other ethnicities. A customised approach to the pandemic has been consistently called for by both Māori and Pacific providers and community leaders because of this context.

We all have the right to health, and this should include special attention to issues of discrimination, equality and equity when it comes to the vulnerable.

The Ministry of Health captures this when it says, 'equity recognises different people with different levels of advantage require different approaches and resources to get equitable health outcomes”.

These are just a few examples of why affirmative action is necessary when a history of discrimination is well documented. Treating such groups the same as those who have not been discriminated against, can reinforce existing inequalities.

So next time you feel internal rumblings of unease about why “other groups” are being treated differently – think about whether there is a positive need for such discrimination.

Special measures are an important tool to reduce the impact of historical and systemic discrimination. Such measures are intended to be temporary because the dream is that one day these actions will not be needed.

Much has been made of Aotearoa’s “team of five million”, in which each person is encouraged to pull together to reach a collective goal. It’s a wonderful concept, but only when history is acknowledged and racial equity is achieved, will we really be a team that values each and every individual.

Meng Foon is the Race Relations Commissioner.