The Wire with Castor

Last week, New Caledonia became the site of widespread civil unrest and mass riots. Protests erupted in response to a decision made by the French government to grant voting rights to residents of New Caledonia who had been residing on the Island for at Least 10 years, overturning a previous constitutional amendment that only permitted the Island’s indigenous Kanak population and residents residing on the Island before 1998 to vote in local elections. 

New Caledonia’s Indigenous Kanak people, who have largely resisted French rule and have campaigned for independence for several generations, said that the constitutional amendment would undermine their push for independence and give greater preference to newer French settlers. 

Oto spoke to Professor Yvonne Underhill-Sem, a professor of Pacific studies at the university of Auckland, to discuss the context behind the current unrest, and the Kanak independence movement as a whole.

From January 1, 2025, the New Zealand Council of Legal Education has plans to make teaching tikanga Māori and te ao Māori compulsory in the legal curriculum for students, meaning all core law courses will have a compulsory tikanga Māori component.

On the 7th of May, King’s Counsel Gary Judd filed a complaint to the Government’s Regulations Review Committee over this move, claiming that tikanga didn’t fall under “proper law subjects”.

Producer Sofia Roger Williams spoke to co-Tumuaki at Te Hunga Rōia Māori o Aotearoa, the Māori Law Society, Tai Ahu (Waikato, Ngāti Kahu (Te Paatu)), about these changes to the legal curriculum and the role of tikanga Māori in law.

For Dear Science this week, Dr Cushla McGoverin chatted to us about synthetic leather made of mushrooms, DNA origami, and the colour of rodent teeth. 

Wire host Castor spoke to the National Party’s Katie Nimon about the government’s recent decisions surrounding Māori wards and the future of the Waitangi Tribunal.  

Producer Sofia spoke to Equal Employment Opportunities Commissioner at Te Kāhui Tika Tangata, the Human Rights Commission, Saunoamaali’i Karanina Sumeo, about a report the Commission jointly released with KPMG last week, ‘Counting the Cost: Estimating the economic cost of workplace bullying and harassment on New Zealand employers’.

She also spoke to co-Tumuaki of Te Hunga Rōia Māori o Aotearoa, the Māori Law Society, Tai Ahu (Waikato, Ngāti Kahu (Te Paatu)), about tikanga Māori being taught in law schools regarding King Counsel’s Gary Judd recent filing of a complaint over incoming compulsory teaching.

Seventy-five researchers from across the globe recorded traditional music and speech in their native language for a recent cross-cultural study comparing global rhythm and pitch patterns.

Producer Ezra spoke to Senior Research Fellow of Psychology at the University of Auckland, Dr Patrick Savage about his involvement in this cross-cultural study.