Wellington Hindu conference discusses social issues

Click for big version
Ms Jaqui Knowles speaking at a session on Rituals
(From left to right: Kaumatua Te Rira Puketapu; Mr. Pitsch Leiser; Ms. Jaqui Knowles; Mr Selva Ramasami)

PRESS RELEASE (19 April 2011)
Wellington Hindu conference discusses social and community issues

The second Wellington Region Hindu Conference was held at the Waiwhetu Marae, Lower Hutt, on 9th April 2011. The theme of the conference was “Hindu-Maori Perspectives on Holistic Health: From Individual and Whanau to Community”.

The conference participants were welcomed by Kaumatua Te Rira Puketapu whose depth of knowledge about cultures and history made a deep impression on the participants. Participants included local Iwi, Hindus from New Zealand and overseas, and Government Ministers, parliamentarians, officials, and representatives from the voluntary sectors.

Two successful sessions on “Healthy families and communities”, and “Rituals and their NZ adaptations surrounding death in the Hindu communities” were held at this conference.

Mr. Te Rira Puketapu laid the foundation of this session with his outline of prophesy on which the Waiwhetu Marae was built, and how the Marae and the community around it have lived up to prophesy. It was a humbling experience for those who attended to hear the history of the Marae that included visits by dignitaries like the Dalai Lama and descendants of Mahatma Gandhi and Martin Luther King.

The session on Healthy Families and Communities was chaired by Ms Pohswan Narayanan of the Upper Hutt Multicultural Council; the session consisted of volunteers from the Hindu community and government liaison officers presenting their experiences and viewpoints on encouraging interactions that encourage well-being of families, communities, and society as a whole.

In his presentation, Senior Sergeant Ngatamatoa Butler of the NZ Police compared the reality that only 6 percent of crimes in New Zealand were committed by ethnic communities, which in his view flew in the face of sensationalized reporting of individual acts of crime by immigrants by many media outlets and vested interests.

Mrs. Sudha Sharma-Thomas and Mrs. Prabha Ravi presented the initiatives planned by the HCNZ volunteers aimed at empowering ethnic and immigrant families in need, and collaboration was planned with government agencies including NZ Police. Similar action plan is in the implementation phase for international students.

Ms. Radhika Ravi and Shweta Barpatre, high school students from Lower Hutt shared the progress Hindu Youth New Zealand has made in engaging youth positively. HYNZ activities have been well received by young people. Hindu Media Forum was launched with the aim of healthy inter-communities relationships by stressing on positive empowerment. The Media Forum will advise on Hindu culture, practices, and people, as required, on public forums.

Mrs. Renu Sarna of the Wellington Samskrit (Sanskrit) Pathshala who has been an active volunteer teacher in a number of countries in the Asia-Pacific region and has been teaching the ancient Hindu language of Sanskrit in Wellington for the past two years, drew on the parallels that existed between Sanskrit and Te Reo Maori. Mrs Sarna’s presentation highlighted the connection between the two ancient languages through similarities in the phonetic sounds and pronunciations, and in meanings.

Mr. Pancha Narayanan, during his presentation outlined the role of the Community sector Taskforce; this also covered the “Two House Model” on which the Community Sector Taskforce operated. He commended the Hindu community for being proactive in their endeavour to work with local Iwi and Manawhenua. He also encouraged the Hindu Council to put in an application for CST support through the Weaving Communities together initiative in CST.

Mr. Tribhuvan Shreshtha, Non-Resident Nepali Association, Wellington talked about the small but growing migrants from Nepal, and the issues they face in a new culture. Ms Aparna Roy, yoga practitioner and teacher, stressed on how subliming oneself leads to a positive community spirit as the individual evolves beyond what materialistic theorists like Maslow have proposed.

The session “Rituals and their NZ adaptations surrounding death in ethnic communities” was the result of the ongoing collaboration of volunteers with the Office of Ethnic Affairs (represented by Mr. Pitsch Leiser) and the Museum of Wellington City and Sea (represented by Ms. Jaqui Knowles). The session was chaired by Mr Selva Ramasami. Hindu community’s need for a dignified farewell to deceased according to the traditional practice of dispersal of ashes from cremation into the panchatva was presented, in the light of the current review of the Burial and Cremation Act 1964. As Maori and Hindu viewpoints were brought to discussion table, creative solutions to differing practices related to waterways emerged. The Korero with Kaumatua Te Rira Puketapu with his in-depth of knowledge about cultures and history made a deep impression on the participants.

As a result of this session, HCNZ resolved to make a submission to Law Commission on Burial and Cremation Act on Hindu Community needs, while
1. Working in close collaboration with Tangata Whenua based on the observations by Mr. Te Rira Puketapu and similar views, so that local cremation practices are aligned with the Maori culture and traditions.
2. Hindu Media Forum to provide feedback, comments and advise on Hindu culture, practices, and people, as required, on public forums.

Hindu Council of New Zealand takes this opportunity to thank Waiwhetu Marae for the warm hospitality, the cooking team, and volunteers from Wellington and other cities who made this conference a success.

For further details and interest in volunteering, please visit
www.hinducouncil.org.nz
or email
hindu.nz@gmail.com

ENDS

© Scoop Media