Māori medicine and health science students from the University of Auckland say they’re tired of receiving racist comments from other students, and the public, suggesting they get special treatment and easier admission into the course.
1News has heard from several students who have been subject to racist remarks both online and during their lectures, singling out their entry into the degree through the Māori and Pasifika Admissions Scheme (MAPAS).
MAPAS is an initiative by the university which sees it allocate 30% of its entries to Māori and Pasifika students.
Such comments claim Māori get special treatment over other students because of the scheme, and that it is easier for them to get into the course.
They say they’re tired of receiving racial abuse from other students, and the public, who claim they get special treatment because they're Māori. (Source: 1News)
First year health science student Alley Murray said she regularly experiences racist comments during university lectures.
“It threw us off at the beginning but now we have got used to it, which is not great," she told Te Karere.
"I don't think we should be getting used to receiving racist comments on the daily.”
Second year medical student Blayze Waddicor has been on the receiving end of racially-driven comments such as: “Māori receive special treatment ", and, “Māori are given everything thanks to the taxpayer”.
Addressing inequality
John Fraser, the university’s Dean of Medicine and Health Science said MAPAS is not about making it easier for Māori and Pasifika, but that it aims to help address inequities in the current health system.
“We are committed as a programme to raise the number of Māori and Pasifika in the health system.
"There is a massive shortage, there is terrible inequity in health in New Zealand around Māori and Pacific communities.”
Fraser believes racist behaviour like it stems from the competitive nature of the degree.
“We do not accept that this is a view that should be held, but we do accept that this sentiment is a result of this highly competitive selection process.”
Their experiences have prompted calls for the university to provide further education to all heath students around Aotearoa’s health inequities, and the country's history of colonisation.
While Fraser said UoA's medical students do learn about health inequities, chief executive of the Māori Health Authority, Riana Manuel, said more is needed.
“Education is where it will start, and then making sure we design systems that don’t tolerate that kind of behaviour.
“The way that the institutions have worked throughout the last 182 years is that it has favoured some parts of our community more than others and therefore this is just trying to rewrite the balance of that.”
MAPAS isn't the University of Auckland's only admission scheme for medical students. It also has an initiative targeted at New Zealand's rural communities -the Rural Regional Admission Scheme (RRAS).
It aims to boost the number of rural health care workers in New Zealand, which the university says is currently facing a critical shortage.
For more on this story, watch Te Karere live on TVNZ1 at 4pm, 1News at 6pm or OnDemand.
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