Jean-Marius Raapoto (born 1 January 1943) is a

French Polynesia )Territorial motto: ( en, "Great Tahiti of the Golden Haze") , anthem = , song_type = Regional anthem , song = " Ia Ora 'O Tahiti Nui" , image_map = French Polynesia on the globe (French Polynesia centered).svg , map_alt = Location of Frenc ...

n educator, academic, politician, and former

Cabinet Minister A minister is a politician who heads a ministry, making and implementing decisions on policies in conjunction with the other ministers. In some jurisdictions the head of government is also a minister and is designated the ‘prime minister’, � ...

. He has been a major advocate for the Tahitian language, and served as Minister of Education in various governments between 2004 and 2009. He is the son of religious leader Samuel Raapoto and the brother of linguist Turo Raapoto.

Early life

Raapoto was born in

Papara Paparā is a commune of French Polynesia, an overseas territory of France in the Pacific Ocean. Paparā is located on the island of Tahiti, in the administrative subdivision of the Windward Islands, themselves part of the Society Islands.

. After attending university in

Dordogne Dordogne ( , or ; ; oc, Dordonha ) is a large rural department in Southwestern France, with its prefecture in Périgueux. Located in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region roughly half-way between the Loire Valley and the Pyrenees, it is named af ...

he trained as a teacher at

Normal school A normal school or normal college is an institution created to Teacher education, train teachers by educating them in the norms of pedagogy and curriculum. In the 19th century in the United States, instruction in normal schools was at the high s ...

Strasbourg Strasbourg (, , ; german: Straßburg ; gsw, label=Bas Rhin Alsatian, Strossburi , gsw, label=Haut Rhin Alsatian, Strossburig ) is the prefecture and largest city of the Grand Est region of eastern France and the official seat of the Eu ...

. He worked as a teacher, then as principal of Charles Viénot school, before returning to France to pursue a degree in linguistics. He taught at Pomare IV college, before becoming its principal in 1980. He later worked for the department of education, where he was an advocate of the Tahitian language before becoming professor of ''Reo Mā’ohi'' at the

University of French Polynesia The University of French Polynesia (french: Université de la Polynésie française) is a French university located in Puna'auia, French Polynesia. History Created by a decree of May 29, 1987, the university was originally called French Pac ...

. In 1996 he graduated with a doctorate in language science.

Political career

In 1985 he founded the ''Ea no Maohinui'' party, and he was elected to the

Assembly of French Polynesia The Assembly of French Polynesia (french: Assemblée de la Polynésie française, Tahitian: Te apo'ora'a rahi o te fenua Mā'ohi) is the unicameral legislature of French Polynesia, an overseas country of the French Republic. It is located at Plac ...

in the 1986 French Polynesian legislative election. He lost his seat at the 1991 election. He later formed the ''Tireo'' party. In 1998 he contested the election to the

French Senate The Senate (french: Sénat, ) is the upper house of the French Parliament, with the lower house being the National Assembly (France), National Assembly, the two houses constituting the legislature of France. The French Senate is made up of 34 ...

, losing to

Gaston Flosse Gaston Flosse (born 24 June 1931) is a French politician who has been President of French Polynesia on five separate occasions. He is currently a member of the Senate of France and has been a French junior minister under Jacques Chirac. He receiv ...

. In June 2004 he was appointed Minister of Education in the cabinet of

Oscar Temaru Oscar Manutahi Temaru (born November 1, 1944) is a French politician. He has been President of French Polynesia (''président de la Polynésie française''), an overseas collectivity of France, on five occasions: in 2004, from 2005 to 2006, from ...

. He was reappointed when Temaru regained the presidency in March 2005, but surrendered his portfolio in April 2006 to return to the Assembly to shore up Temaru's majority. He was later reappointed, and oversaw the trial of English-language and ''te reo'' education to pre-schoolers. Following the

2008 French Polynesian legislative election Early legislative elections were held in French Polynesia in early 2008. The first round was held on 27 January, with the second round on 10 February. The early elections was the first one to be conducted under a reformed electoral system. Back ...

he was reappointed Education Minister in the coalition cabinet of

, but resigned as a Minister in April 2008 after Flosse lost a confidence vote and

Gaston Tong Sang Gaston Tong Sang (born August 7, 1949 in Bora Bora) is a French politician and is the former President of French Polynesia. He served terms as President of French Polynesia from November 2009 until April 2011, from April 2008 until February 2009 ...

became president. He rejoined the Assembly in July 2008. He rejoined cabinet again as Education Minister when Temaru returned to power in February 2009. He was not reappointed to Temaru's fifth cabinet in 2011, instead serving as chair of the Assembly's education committee. After retiring from politics he worked for the town of

Faaa Faaā (also Faaa or Faaʻā; ) is a commune in the suburbs of Papeete in French Polynesia, an overseas country of France in the Pacific Ocean. Faaā is located on the island of Tahiti, in the administrative subdivision of the Windward Islands,< ...

, then moved to

Niau Niau is a small atoll in French Polynesia, in the commune of Fakarava (Tuamotu archipelago). This atoll has a broad fringing reef, a diameter of 8 km and an area of 53 km2. Niau's lagoon is swampy, hypersaline and entirely enclosed. Th ...

in the

Tuamotus The Tuamotu Archipelago or the Tuamotu Islands (french: Îles Tuamotu, officially ) are a French Polynesian chain of just under 80 islands and atolls in the southern Pacific Ocean. They constitute the largest chain of atolls in the world, extendin ...

where he opened a coconut oil mill. In 2019 he was appointed an officer of the

Order of Tahiti Nui The Order of Tahiti Nui was established on 5 June 1996 by the Assembly of French Polynesia to reward distinguished merit and achievements in the service to French Polynesia. History The Order of Tahiti Nui was established June 5, 1996 by resolu ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Raapoto, Jean-Marius Living people 1943 births People from Tahiti French Polynesian academics French Polynesian educators French Polynesian civil servants Academic staff of the University of French Polynesia Members of the Assembly of French Polynesia Education ministers of French Polynesia Tavini Huiraatira politicians Officers of the Order of Tahiti Nui