Wellington Refugees as Survivors Trust gathering

Greetings, Kia Ora, Kia Orana, Fakalofa Lahi Atu, Taloha Ni

To:  Derek Gill, Trust Chairman; Jeff Thomas; Trust General Manager;  Ranka Margetic-Sosa, Clinical Director; Dr Raewyn Brockway, the Trust's longest serving psychiatrist; Ladies and Gentlemen:  My greetings to you all.

It is with pleasure that as Patron of the Wellington Refugees as Survivors Trust that I host this function at Government House in Wellington this afternoon.

This year is a special year for the Wellington Refugees as Survivors Trust as it marks 10 years of dedicated service to our community.  It follows the charity fashion show held here in March this year.

In the past decade more than 2,700 refugees, who sought asylum at the border, have had their applications for refugee status approved by the Refugee Status Branch of Immigration Service.  As well since the year 2000, a further 486 have had their status approved by the Refugee Status Appeal Authority.  Also since 2000, more than 5000 refugees have been accepted as a part of New Zealand's annual quota through its international obligations with the UN High Commissioner for Refugees.

Refugees are a special group of immigrants.  The Compact English Dictionary defines a refugee as "a person who has been forced to leave their country in order to escape war, persecution, or natural disaster." In other words, unlike other immigrants who move to another country for the positive reason that they want to, refugees do so because for the negative reason that they have been forced to leave.

The difference creates particular issues for refugees that other immigrants rarely experience.

Many have suffered abuse, including torture, and may have continually lived a life full of violence and fear.  Sometimes they will have their families with them, but that is not always the case.  On occasions, members of their families may have died in the violence that caused them to flee.

So in addition to all the issues that a every settler in a new land faces, including language and culture, refugees have to contend with considerable psychological "baggage."

As anyone who has experienced trauma in their lives can testify, those memories do not easily fade.  Reports of ongoing violence in their homeland will inevitably bring those memories to the surface again.  Those concerns will be compounded if, as is likely the case, friends and family remain in their former country.

The Wellington Refugees as Survivors Trust and Centre play an important role in ensuring that New Zealand meets its international obligations in supporting refugees in their new homeland.  As the statistics I have outlined earlier indicate, there are large numbers of people who need assistance.

The Centre has about 2,000 interactions with refugees each year and takes on about 50 new clients a year.  Depending on the need, the support it provides can continue for an extended period.

That the Trust and Centre have reached this milestone is due to the dedicated work of its clinical and support staff.  That some of the Centre's original employees continue to work for it reflects quality and professionalism of its entire staff in making a difference to people who have had horrifying life journeys.

Ten years of service would also have not been possible without the leadership and commitment of the volunteer Board members and the support they, and the staff, receive from the Friends of Refugees as Survivors.

I would like to thank you all and to congratulate you on reaching this important milestone.

No reira, tena koutou, tena koutou, kia ora, kia kaha, tena koutou katoa.