For over 30 years, the Multicultural Council of Wellington (MCW) has been working to bring the different ethnic communities in Wellington together on a common platform dedicated to the celebration of ethnic diversity in Aotearoa.
With more than 20 ethnic community organisations as its members, the council works closely with the New Zealand Police and other government agencies to ensure the participation and representation of ethnic communities in central and local government.
The council lobbies on behalf of migrants to ensure that “ethnic communities are fully engaged, and add value to the wellbeing and leadership of Wellington’s wider community.”
The council is one of 23 regional councils coming under the umbrella organisation, the New Zealand Federation of Multicultural Councils.
A key initiative launched by Multicultural New Zealand (MNZ) on Race Relations Day on 25 March 2022 was a nationwide survey marking the “special occasions of all cultures in New Zealand.”
The survey is a first step in mapping the important dates on the calendar for people of diverse cultural backgrounds across New Zealand.
The project, which is part of an initiative to publish NZ’s first Tiriti-based multicultural calendar later this year, is supported by the NZ Police.
The survey, launched by Multicultural New Zealand (MNZ), compiles information on food, costumes, activities, locations and dates on any occasion of the respondent’s choice.
“With this we can begin to paint a rich picture of the 200 plus ethnicities that make up New Zealand,” says MNZ president Pancha Narayanan.
Narayanan says Aotearoa has embraced its multiculturism “in leaps and bounds in the past decade.”
The census has identified a total of 213 ethnic groups, while Statistics New Zealand has recognised 196 countries, making New Zealand one of the most ethnically diverse nations in the world.
All of these ethnic groups celebrate their special occasions throughout the year.
Rachel Qi, president of the MCW, says the council aims to make a positive difference to the immigrant communities and help them add value to the wider Wellington community. “We are focused on holding cultural, sporting and social activities as well as celebrate festivals in keeping with Wellington’s diversity.”
MNZ, of which MCW is a part, has re-signed the memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the New Zealand Police as a partnership organisation. “This is a milestone for us to engage deeper with the New Zealand Police to build a safer community together, where migrants feel comfortable and secure,” Rachel says.
The MCW engages with the police on the recruitment process to ensure better ethnic representation in the police.
Rachel points out that the bulk of the members of the MCW are registered community groups, such as the Wellington Indian Association which has roughly 1500 fee-paying members. Other members are community groups hailing from China, Malaysia, The Philippines, Africa, Fiji, Pakistan, Myanmar, Sri Lanka, Bulgaria, Armenia and other countries. The Multicultural Festival is an annual event held by the MCW in January, which coincides with the celebration of the Chinese New Year. The event is supported by the Wellington City Council.
Another important event on the MCW calendar is International Women’s Day held in March, which is marked by workshops on women’s empowerment and a “ladies evening”, when women drawn from the various ethnic communities of Wellington get together for a social evening of cat walks and dinner.
Race Relations Day is jointly celebrated in April by the MNZ, MCW, Human Rights Commission, New Zealand Police, Wellington City Council, and other stakeholders. Chinese New Year, Diwali, Eid, Pacific day, African day and Pakistan day are some of the festive occasions marked by the MCW in collaboration with the Royal New Zealand Police College based in Porirua.
One notable event was the NZ police recruits staging a Bollywood dance.
“The MCW has a solid, long-term partnership with the New Zealand Police,” Rachel notes. “We want to bring all the communities together to celebrate diversity, to support each other for unity, for peace and for love.”
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