A delegation of war veterans visits New Caledonia

This year’s Anzac Day celebrations at the national war memorial in Noumea were a particularly special event for New Zealand with the presence of Minister of Veterans Affairs, the Hon Michael Woodhouse, and Chief of Navy Rear Admiral Jack Steer who led a delegation of 84 New Zealand veterans of the War in the Pacific, aged from 86 to 97. 

70th anniversary of New Zealand’s involvement in the War in the Pacific

New Zealand, New Caledonia and the South Pacific War

Traditionally, New Zealand had little connection with New Caledonia, which was regarded as lying within the Australian sphere of influence. For a long time the island, as a French possession, was in fact seen as a possible source of threat. Apart from one brief visit in August 1914 by the New Zealand expeditionary force heading for German Samoa, New Zealand military forces had little contact with it.

Māori roll or general roll? It’s your choice. He aha ō whakāro.

The Māori Electoral Option gives New Zealanders of Māori descent the opportunity to choose whether they want to be on the Māori Electoral Roll or the General Electoral Roll when they vote in the next two General Elections.