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23 December 2020
A message from Tony Lynch
Tēnā koutou
Greetings everyone. I am very pleased to have the opportunity to introduce myself to you all. My name is Tony Lynch, Deputy Chief Executive, National Security Group, at the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet and Lead Official for the Government’s response to the Royal Commission of Inquiry into the Terrorist Attack on the Christchurch Masjidain.
As the lead official, my role is to ensure a coordinated and timely response to the report, as well as to provide advice to Government on a response that is rigorous, inclusive, and transparent.
To achieve those goals – and to ensure that we are making changes that reflect your needs and priorities – we will be looking to meet with communities across New Zealand in late January and early February 2021. We will be in contact with details on those engagements in the New Year and will also have information available on our website.
I am very much looking forward to meeting with you all very soon, and having the opportunity to work with you in making New Zealand a safer, more inclusive society for everyone.
In the meantime, please all have a restful summer break.
Waiho i te toipoto, kaua i te toiroa | Let us keep close together, not wide apart
This whakatauki speaks to the importance of keeping connected, of maintaining relationships and dialogue so that we can keep moving forward together.
Ngā mihi nui
Tony Lynch
Deputy Chief Executive, National Security Group
Department of Prime Minister & Cabinet
Kia ora koutou
2020 has felt like a long year because of the disruption and stress of COVID-19. Most of us will take a much-needed break to recharge. I know that many will work over the holidays, as our emergency and essential services and those caring for others will keep looking after people. A big thank you to everyone working to keep us safe and secure.
I wish our communities across Aotearoa New Zealand a happy holiday season and all the best for the new year.
Ngā mihi nui
Anusha Guler
Executive Director, Office of Ethnic Communities
Our recent work
Preparing for COVID-19 Vaccines
In November we met with colleagues from the Ministries of Health and Business, Innovation and Employment to talk about the Government’s plans for COVID-19 vaccines. They are keen to engage early with ethnic communities and ensure everyone gets the information they need. OEC will help with this, particularly around understanding the religious and cultural needs of our many communities when it comes to vaccines.
Realistically, vaccinations are some months away. Any vaccine will have to be approved by Medsafe before it can be used in New Zealand. A lot of work is going into deciding what vaccines New Zealand will purchase. Planning for how vaccinations would be rolled-out is also underway.
More information will be provided as plans develop, and we can share more detail. In the meantime, you can find out more about New Zealand’s vaccine strategy on the COVID-19 website.
Diwali at Parliament
On 7 December the Minister for Diversity, Inclusion and Ethnic Communities, the Honourable Priyanca Radhakrishnan, hosted Parliament’s annual Diwali celebration.
It was the culmination of weeks of work by our Office’s team.
Over 200 people attended, including the Prime Minister; the High Commissioner of India, His Excellency Mr Muktesh Pardeshi; the president of the New Zealand Indian Central Association, Mr Paul Patel; the chief executive of the Department of Internal Affairs, Mr Paul James; the executive director of the Office of Ethnic Communities, Ms Anusha Guler; Members of Parliament and members of our Indian and Hindu communities.
Parliament’s Banqueting Hall was a blaze of colour a costume. There were music and dance performances by Chetan Ramlu, Abhishek Ravi, the Shree Dance Academy, the Mudra Dance Academy, and the Wellington Punjabi Women’s Association.
We’d like to say a big thank you to everyone who came along and helped make this event so special. Head out to our Facebook Page to see an image gallery of this wonderful celebration.
Other news
Emergency benefit for temporary visa holders
Although the Foreign Nationals Support Programme has finished there is still support available. If you've got a temporary visa and you can't work, support yourself or return home due to COVID-19, you may be able to get an Emergency Benefit. This payment is to help with your basic living costs.
COVID-19 - Make summer unstoppable
The whole country has done a brilliant job keeping COVID-19 at bay. The December/January period is a time when lots of Kiwis travel so it’s especially important to keep doing the right things. Please help keep everyone safe by:
- Staying home if you’re sick
- Getting tested if you have COVID-19 type symptoms
- Keeping track of where you’ve been
- Washing your hands.
This summer, many of us will be traveling around New Zealand and going to big events. Shops will be more crowded than usual, and we’ll be going to more social gatherings.
Here are some other things you can do over our first summer under COVID-19 conditions:
- Have your phone ready to make scanning QR codes quick and easy
- You could pack a summer essentials bag if you’re traveling, with hand sanitiser, face coverings, cleaning products, and a booklet for contact tracing
- Keep hand sanitiser in your pocket or bag
- Shops and events can be very crowded at this time of year, but try and keep your distance from people you do not know
- If you’re hosting a gathering for friends and whānau, create a QR code for your guests to scan in
- If you’re hosting a gathering, consider holding it outdoors. The more space people have, the harder it is for COVID-19 to spread.
If you run a business, use the Make Summer Unstoppable resources, including posters, templates, social media tiles, and digital banners.
Check out the Make Summer Unstoppable page on the Unite Against COVID-19 website.
International Al-Azhar competition for Muslim scholars and researchers
The Egyptian Ambassador, Her Excellency Mrs Dina El Sehy, wrote asking us to share details of a competition for Islamic scholars and researchers. Created by the Al-Azhar Ash Sharif, the competition invites people to submit research papers on topics related to contemporary Islamic issues.
Meet the team
In this edition we introduce you to Eileen Yee, Diversity and Engagement Advisor, Southern Community Engagement Team.
Eileen was born and raised in Christchurch, a fourth-generation Chinese New Zealander. As a young teenager growing up in New Zealand, she never felt a strong connection to her family in China or to her great grandparents in New Zealand. However, as a young adult, her university and overseas experiences provided her with the opportunity to embrace her unique perspective as a Chinese New Zealander and to feel comfortable having a dual identity. She also learned to appreciate what her parents, grandparents, and great grandparents went through when moving to NZ.
After completing a Bachelor of Arts with Honours in history and Chinese language at the University of Canterbury, Eileen spent the next 3 and a half years in China, England, and Canada. Back in Aotearoa she went to work in the public service and has been doing so for 6 years, including her Diversity and Engagement Advisor role for the Southern Community Engagement Team, which she started in July 2019.
Eileen has been heavily involved in our office’s valuing ethnic diversity mahi, including working within the Racism Is No Joke campaign team and on the series of cultural events currently being held at Riverside Market.
This year Eileen has made a commitment to reconnect with Te Reo Māori. She has already completed one formal class and is actively pursuing opportunities to use it. She loves exploring new places, sports, organising social events, and is a huge animal lover (she has three cats)!
