Sunita Narayan, Maysoon Salama, Rakesh Naidoo, Alexis Lewgor, Fumijuki Saijo and Ralph Coorea. Photo: Supplied / RNZ
More than half a dozen Asian individuals have been recognised in this year's King's Birthday Honours List for their services to the ethnic community.
Richard Wong She heads the list, becoming a Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit for his services to burn care, including his work on victims of the Whakaari/White Island volcanic eruption.
New Zealand's top burns specialist joins eight other Asian recipients who were recognised for their contributions to language, education, health and the country's ethnic communities.
Language preservation
Sunita Narayan has been made an Officer of the New Zealand Order of Merit for her services to language education and the Indian community.
Sunita Narayan. Photo: Supplied
She has been involved with the Wellington Hindi School and Hindi education in New Zealand since 1995. She has also been the president of Community Languages New Zealand since 2004.
"I quote a Māori whakataukī: Ehara taku toa i te toa takitahi; engari he toa takitini. It means my success does not only come from me as an individual, but indeed comes from the collective efforts of the many," Narayan said, dedicating the recognition to the heritage language educators she has worked with.
Narayan also offered a suggestion on ways to preserve ethnic languages in New Zealand.
"Migrant heritage languages are at a risk of loss due to a lack of recognition," she said.
"Many communities are putting huge efforts in filling this gap by offering language, culture and religious classes by establishing language-based schools.
"A co-funded community/Ministry of Education partnership model has the potential to achieve community aspirations regarding language and culture, even if taught outside the mainstream. To reap the real benefits of multilingualism, we need to resume some serious conversations."
Education and the Muslim community
Christchurch-based Maysoon Salama, a well-known figure in New Zealand's Muslim community who was a panel speaker at the 2022 UN Congress of Victims of Terrorism, has been made an Honorary Officer of the New Zealand Order of Merit for her services to education and the Muslim community.
Maysoon Salama. Photo: RNZ
Salama was the co-founder and manager of the An-Nur Trust Early Learning and Childcare Centres. It has operated a branch in Christchurch since 2000, and another in Dunedin since 2014.
She was currently emeritus national coordinator of the Islamic Women's Council of New Zealand. She has worked as co-founder and coordinator of the National Islamic Sisterhood Association since 2000.
"I am humbled, honoured and grateful to Allah," Salama said.
"I am also thankful to New Zealand and those who thought I am well deserving of this recognition. I pray for peaceful, prosperous and safe New Zealand."
Although Salama acknowledged the government's efforts to assist the Muslim community, especially after the 15 March terrorist attacks in Christchurch, she said more work was needed.
"There is the issue of employment, especially for Muslim women who wear the hijab," she said.
"There should be more career pathways, acknowledging overseas degrees and experience, and apprenticeships. Problems in securing resident visas, dealing with Islamophobia, hate speech, and facing discrimination and bullying in schools are other focus areas.
"Compensation schemes are comprehensive in other countries for mass shooting terrorist acts ... In New Zealand, there is no such scheme. The government should consider compensation and fair restorative justice schemes."
Community partnership
Superintendent Rakesh Naidoo, who has been with New Zealand Police for 21 years, has been made a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit for his services to the police and ethnic communities.
Superintendent Rakesh Naidoo. Photo: Supplied
"New Zealand Police is only as strong as its partnership with communities," Naidoo said.
"It is these communities and colleagues, past and present, that I stand alongside and on the shoulders of to receive this generous recognition."
He said New Zealand Police was one of the first organisations to design specific headwear for both the Sikh and Muslim communities and establish multifaith prayer rooms in the districts.
"It is critically important that all ethnic communities in Aotearoa New Zealand can freely express their culture and identity with no fear of retaliation," he said.
"We have signed MoUs (memorandums of understanding) with organisations such as the Federation of Islamic Associations of New Zealand and Multicultural New Zealand. We engage actively with ethnic communities to address their needs and ensure that they have a voice back into our organisation."
Ethnic communities
Alexis Lewgor, who was national president of the New Zealand Federation of Multicultural Councils (NZFMC) from 2014 to 2017, has been made a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit for services to ethnic communities.
Alexis Lewgor. Photo: Supplied
Lewgor was one of the founding members of the Rotorua Ethnic Council, now the Rotorua Multicultural Council, and was president from 2007 to 2018.
She was also the national president and chair of NZFMC's Ethnic Women's Council for three years.
She was currently a trustee of the Rotorua Civic Arts Trust, chairperson of the Rotorua Pacific Islands Development Charitable Trust and a past president of the Rotorua Fijian Association.
"I am overwhelmed and delighted," Lewgor said.
"This gives me validation. It is an acknowledgement of a job well done. I just wanted to have an impact in changing people's lives or community and the issues we face."
Bilateral ties
Fumiyuki Saijo, who has helped build a sister-city relationship between Dunedin and Otaru in Japan since 1984, has been made an Honorary Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit.
Fumiyuki Saijo. Photo: Supplied
"By actively promoting sister-city exchanges, I hope the residents of Otaru and Dunedin will change their perceptions of each other, and understand each other's history and culture," he told RNZ from Japan.
"I hope it will lead to an increase in tourists to both countries, as well as in international students. In addition to human exchanges, I believe exchanges between the Māori culture and the culture of the Ainu people of Hokkaido should be promoted."
Saijo was the current president of the Otaru New Zealand Society and Hokkaido Federation of New Zealand Societies, and a member of the Japan New Zealand Business Council.
He helped create a Japanese garden at the Dunedin Botanical Gardens. He also gifted a special book collection on Japanese arts to the city's public library, and more than 100 kimono to the Otago Museum.
Diversity in action
Finally, three individuals from New Zealand's South Asian communities were awarded a King's Service Medal in the honours' list.
These include Ralph Correa for services to the Indian community, Ram SriRamaratnam for services to the Tamil community and Handunnethi Kolitha De Silva for services to the healthcare sector.
Ralph Correa. Photo: Supplied
Correa, who established the Northland Indian Association (NIA) in 2007, was the force behind Northland Diwali - the largest ethnic community celebration in the region. Last year's festivities included a fusion of Indian and Māori dance.
"Over the years, NIA has undertaken numerous festival projects," Correa said.
"Additionally, we have tackled social isolation among the elderly by implementing initiatives such as installing friendship benches. During the [Covid-19] lockdowns, we delivered essential food and supplies to families and students in need."
Similar initiatives have been undertaken by the Wellington Tamil Society.
"We have run a Tamil School for the past 35 years, about 25 years of that in Lower Hutt, with voluntary teachers and using rented community space," said SriRamaratnam, who served as the society's secretary and president between 1990 and 2009.
Ram SriRamaratnam. Photo: Supplied
"For New Zealand to thrive as a multicultural society, it is important that individual communities sustain and promote their identities, and the community identity is supported by the governments, both local and central.
"Local authorities helped communities like Wellington Tamils to lease-own a building where community library, art and heritage can be set up to give our community a sense of identity. Local authorities and the central government can also helped by joining our community to celebrate our cultural festivals besides Diwali, such as Thai Pongal [Tamil harvest festival] in January each year."
De Silva, who was the second person in his family to receive the King's Service Medal said: "My older brother won the same award in 2005 for his service to the community. So, our whole whānau will be celebrating our family's contribution to New Zealand on this King's Birthday."
On the ongoing crisis facing the healthcare sector, he said: "Making the prescriptions free from July will [give] more people access to their GPs. But more money needs to be allocated to train new GPs, because we are facing an acute shortage as many older ones retire in large numbers."
Dr Handunnethi De Silva. Photo: Supplied
