In a historic event for the Hindu community in the island country, New Zealand Prime Minister Helen Clark inaugurated the first New Zealand Hindu Conference, by lighting the holy lamp at the Hindu Heritage Centre in Auckland on May 12, 2007.
Hindus Second Largest Religious Community in NZ
The theme of the conference was "Contribution of Hindu Community to the
National Life of New Zealand". The keynote address was presented by Dr
Guna Magesan, general secretary, Hindu Council of New Zealand Inc and a senior
scientist with NZ government research organisation. In his presentation, he
highlighted the fact, based on NZ census 2006, that Hindu community is the second
largest faith-based community in New Zealand and that it grew by 62% in the
last 5 years.
Hindu Contribution to New Zealand
The Prime Minister acknowledged the Hindu contribution to the national life
of New Zealand in her special address to the audience. Dr Magesan, in his keynote
address, mentioned how Hindu doctors and nurses are providing services by working
for the various health boards and also running successful private hospitals,
thereby fulfilling the shortage of skills in the health sector. In terms of
economics, he explained how the Hindu migrants moved from mini business (corner
dairy shops) to mega projects in a few decades. In education, the number of
graduates, post graduates and doctoral degree holders in Hindu community multiplied
three fold as compared to the total population, in percentage terms. In social
and cultural aspects, Dr Magesan showed evidences of strengthening bonds between
Hindus and Maori community, and also how Hindus have integrated with the New
Zealand society while maintaining the Hindu identity intact.
Manukau: Hindu Capital of NZ
Sir Barry Curtis, the Mayor of Manukau city, mentioned that Manukau is the Hindu
capital of New Zealand since a large number of Hindus live in the Manukau county.
Haare Williams, the kaumatua (a Maori elder) and Tangata Whenua (son of the
soil), blessed the occasion with a Maori traditional prayer. Swami Vigyananand
of the World Hindu Council chanted a Hindu prayer on the auspicious occasion.
A number of Hindu dignitaries from overseas attended the event. Aruneshwar Gupta, President of Hindu Heritage Foundation; Ravi Kumar, joint coordinator Sewa International; Vijay Singhal, Secretary of Hindu Council of Australia; and Swami Sanyuktanand from Fiji Sevashram Sangha participated in the conference. The welcome address was given by Vinod Kumar, a successful businessman from Auckland, and the President of the Hindu Council of New Zealand Inc. Shri Sridhara Mysore, the media and PR coordinator of Hindu Council of New Zealand Inc., was the master of ceremony.
2008 Conference
Following the success of this conference, and to satisfy the expectations of
the audience, next year's conference will be held from 16 - 18 May 2008 with
the theme "Sustaining New Zealand Communities with Yoga, Meditation and
Ayurveda".
For more information, please contact Dr Guna Magesan, Conference Coordinator
