Polish Children's 65th Reunion

May I begin by greeting everyone in the languages of the realm of New Zealand, in English, Māori, Cook Island Māori, Niuean, Tokelauan and New Zealand Sign Language.

Greetings, Kia Ora, Kia Orana, Fakalofa Lahi Atu, Taloha Ni, and as it is afternoon [sign].

May I then specifically greet you: Your Grace Archbishop John Dew, Catholic Archbishop of Wellington; Mr Zdzislaw Lepionka, President of the New Zealand Polish Association and Chairperson of the Polish Children’s 65th Reunion  Committee; Mrs Beata Stoczynska, Chargé d'Affaires from the Polish Embassy in Wellington ; Father Tomasez Sielicki, Superior General of the Society of Christ from Poznan in Poland; Father Tadeusz Przybylak, Provincial of the Society of Christ from Australia and local chaplain Father Tadeusz Świątkowski; Your Worship Kerry Prendergast, Mayor of Wellington; Hon Chris Finlayson, Minister for Culture and Heritage; Hon Phil Goff, Leader of the Opposition; Distinguished guests otherwise; Ladies and Gentlemen.  In the context of today, may I add the greetings: Dzień dobry.

It is a matter of great pleasure to have been present at this morning’s Jubilee Mass at the Cathedral of the Sacred Heart and now this Jubilee luncheon to mark the 65th anniversary of the arrival of the Polish children aboard the American troopship, USS General Randall which  whilst normally carrying United States troops from Bombay to St Pedro the port of Los Angeles, had on this journey carried Australian and New Zealand troops home and also brought the historic consignment (so far as we are concerned) of 733 children and 102 adults.

I would like to speak of the significance of today’s anniversary, for the people gathered here today, and also more widely in terms of our country’s contribution to assisting refugees.

I should state at the outset that the Governor-General role provides for my wife Susan and I a close and continuing connection with the refugee community.  Susan, who is unable to be with us today, due to another event in Auckland, is patron of Wellington Refugees as Survivors Centre and I am patron of the Auckland Regional Migrant Services Trust.

The landing and journey 65 years ago was a culmination.   The Polish nation had been dismembered by the invading Nazi and Soviet armies in 1939 and this group and their families had been deported with others to labour camps in Siberia before then being evacuated to Iran where they lived for two years. 

Great hardship had been endured particularly in Europe.  Many saw parents, siblings and friends killed by the invading Soviet army.  Others saw friends and family die from starvation and disease, either during deportation or in the labour camps or later on the long trek to Iran.

In a 1974 book called The Invited the late Krstyna Skwarko, whose daughter is present this afternoon, recounted the reception the children received at the Wellington Railway Station the following day in the following words:-

“There were hundreds of smiling Wellington school children waving New Zealand and Polish flags as a gesture of welcome on the platform … The singing of the national anthems and gifts of flowers made the occasion even more moving. It was the first direct contact between the children of the two nations. A brief meeting which was to change into a deep and lasting friendship over the years.” 
 
As the group travelled north, groups of children could be seen lining the track, waving flags and handkerchiefs, even at towns where the train did not stop until their new home of Pahiatua was reached.  With the war ending the following year and Poland coming under Soviet domination, the children were invited to stay. 

The journey to New Zealand arose on the invitation of the then Prime Minister, Rt Hon Peter Fraser.  He led New Zealand’s contribution in war time and thereafter,  with an emphasis on our international contribution in the United Nations, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the United Nations High Commission for Refugees. 

The story of the Polish refugees was at the beginning of New Zealand’s now established international reputation as a nation ready and willing to accept those forced from their homes.   Since then there has been a continuing history of goodwill towards refugee survivors, with New Zealand’s refugee policy reflecting commitment by successive governments to fulfilling international humanitarian obligations and responsibilities as a signatory to the United Nations 1951 Convention and the 1967 Protocol Relating to the Status of Refugees.

The children being celebrated are some of the many thousands of refugees New Zealand has accepted since 1944.  Since 1976, for example, Refugee Services Aotearoa, as New Zealand’s principal resettlement agency, has assisted more than 40,000 refugees settle and build new lives here.   While those numbers are small in comparison to the millions of displaced people in the world, it is high compared with New Zealand’s population. 
 
Sixty five years on, those children—represented by the adults here today—have gone on to make a lasting contribution to New Zealand’s society, culture and economy.  A short film produced by the then National Film Unit in 1966, which, I understand, can now be viewed online, shows the Polish children as adults, working as doctors, builders, plumbers and educators, and raising families.  

Despite the trauma and upheaval endured, you integrated well into New Zealand, taking pride in both your new home and in your Polish heritage.  That heritage, for example, is represented by the Polish House, Dom Polski, in Newtown.  I was interested to see a quote to the curators of an exhibition about the New Zealand Poles in 1992 which read:

“I feel very privileged getting the best of two worlds.  When I was very young, I sometimes felt embarrassed about being different because I did not understand, but now I have no problems.  I love being part of the Polish world and I certainly intend to continue with my polskosc [Polishness] in future.”  

This pattern has been repeated by the  many other refugees who have followed.  Whether from Hungary in the 1950s,  Czechoslovakia in the 1960s, Viet Nam and Cambodia in 1970s and 1980s, or Somali and the former Yugoslavia in the 1990s, all have sought to make a new life in New Zealand while taking pride in the culture and heritage they brought with them.

This reunion celebration therefore serves several purposes.  First, it is an opportunity for those who settled here to renew friendships and remember those who are no longer with us.

Secondly, it is an opportunity for the children and grandchildren of those original refugees to learn more of their parents’ and grandparents’ lives and of their Polish heritage. 

Finally, it is an opportunity to remember the plight of the millions of people displaced by war, famine and disease and to renew New Zealand’s commitment to its international humanitarian obligations and responsibilities.  As one of the children, Irena Ogonowska-Coates, recently noted: “The immense humanitarian gesture of the New Zealand Government saved the lives of the Polish children who arrived here. New Zealand is now my second homeland. I feel privileged to be living here and to be a New Zealand citizen.  I shall forever remain grateful to this hospitable country for the security, peace, education and a good life among wonderful people.”

On a note that is, I hope, mutually uplifting, I will close in New Zealand’s first language, Māori, offering greetings and wishing you all good health and fortitude in your endeavours.

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