Forensic identification of "race" - The issues in New Zealand

The identification of the "race" of human remains by forensic anthropologists in New Zealand provides Maori with a service that is both helpful and contentious. In estimating "race" anthropologists acknowledge the Maori view that physical remains are important because they retain the spirit of the deceased after death. Doing so is ethically paradoxical because the estimation of "race" implies that races exist, a concept that has been questioned and rejected by most anthropologists. Despite this, to meet the needs of Maori and to treat human remains with the respect that is traditionally accorded them, forensic anthropologists have a responsibility to attempt to estimate "race."