Abused for defending choice

Home	News	Opinion	Videos	Blogs	Features	Family Notices	Classifieds	Photos	Events	Clubs	Advertising	Contact

Sport	Focus on the Land	Entertainment

Editorials	Columns	Letters

News	Market Place

A BARRAGE of reaction heaped upon a Gisborne couple after they spoke out against their two-year-old being taught Maori language at childcare has left them feeling like they were “hung out to dry” by a national television show.

Phill and Haylee Foster appeared on Campbell Live on Monday night with their daughter Latika. Mr Foster had approached the current affairs show last week to protest about his daughter being spoken to in Maori and being taught Maori words at her childcare centre.

He was encouraged to go ahead with the story by a Campbell Live staff member, who said she was having the same problem with her 18-month-old in an Auckland childcare centre, he said.

The Fosters were told the segment would air last week but it was delayed.

They feel this was so their story could coincide with the start of Maori Language Week on Monday to make it more inflammatory — the theme of this year’s week is Arohatia te reo Maori – cherish the Maori language.

The Fosters had no idea it was Maori Language Week until they watched TV that night and said their story was made to look “one-sided”.

Appearing on national television about such a controversial issue has had its drawbacks — there has been abuse over the phone and hundreds of critical comments left over social networking sites and TV3’s website.

Mr Foster has been called “Hitler” and Mrs Foster, pregnant with baby No.2, says she is too apprehensive to go out because of the reaction she might get.

Two family members have even stopped “talking to them since the show aired.

“On Facebook they have even said we’re irresponsible parents for giving our child a ghetto name. Latika means lovely little one in Indian. We should have the choice about when our daughter learns another language.”

But there has been support from surprising corners too.

“Some Maori people have told us they are 100 percent behind us and it should be the parents’ choice.”

At two, their daughter Latika can say cat and count to five.

Her parents say that they want her to grasp English before she is introduced to another language — irrespective of what the other language is.

They refute claims they are racist and say they simply want as parents to have the choice to decide when their toddler should learn another language.

“We’re not saying we don’t like Maoris and we don’t like their language . . . what we’re saying is that at the age of two our daughter needs to learn English first. Once we’ve taught her English and got no slang in there, then at five when she sits down at school they can teach her Maori then,” said Mr Foster.

“Everyone else is too gutless to stand up for it. I admire that politician up north, Hone Harawira, because he stands up for things. One of the ladies at the kindy told us that they also teach Tongan there.

“I said, ‘We don’t want her to learn that either’. Tongans are the nicest people in the world but I still don’t want her to learn that language either at this stage of her life.”

Mr Foster feels like the point they were trying to get across was twisted out of proportion and turned into a race issue.

Their daughter has been pulled from the childcare centre and they are unsure whether they will enrol her at another one.

The Fosters say they have heard the information about introducing children at an early age to other languages but are adamant it is still their choice as parents to say whether they want her to be bi-lingual before she turns five.

Broadcasters say timing was coincidental

MEDIAWORKS spokeswoman Rachel Lorimer said that in no way was there any attempt to ‘‘hang the Fosters out to dry’’ by Campbell Live.

“That is simply not how our journalists operate. Yes, the comments made by the Fosters are controversial, but they approached Campbell Live last Friday afternoon with a desire to express strongly- held views, and were treated with fairness and balance by all involved.

“The feedback we received after the programme aired was split between people supportive of the Fosters’ point of view and those who were not.

“It is also important to note that the timing of the story going to air was coincidental.”

As it was too late to reach the childcare centre on Friday afternoon, the Fosters were told the story would run on Monday. They were also told by a Campbell Live producer that this was Maori Language Week, she said.