DOCSLIB.ORG

Peter Fraser

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text

Load more

N E \V z_E A L A N D S T U D I E S 1!!J BOOK 'RJVIEW by SiiiiOII sheppard Peter Fraser: Master Politician Fraser made more important decisions in more interesting times Margaret Clark (Ed), The Dunmore Press, 1998, $29.95 than Holyoake ever did. ARL!ER THIS YEAR I con­ International Relations at Victoria Congratulations are due to the E ducted a survey among University, the book is derived from organisers of the conference for academics and other leaders in their a conference held in August 1997, their diligence in assembling a fields asking them to give their part of a series being conducted by roster of speakers capable of appraisal of New Zealand's providing such a broad Prime Ministers according spectrum of perspectives on to the extent to which they Fraser. This multi-faceted made a positive contribu­ approach pays dividends in tion to the history of the that it reflects the depth of country. From the replies I Fraser's character and the was able to establish a breadth of his contribution to ranking of the Prime New Zealand history. Ministers, from greatest to The first three phases of least effective. Fraser's political career are It was no surprise that discussed; from early Richard Seddon finished in socialist firebrand, to key first place. But I was lieutenant in the first Labour intrigued by the runner up. Government, to wartime It was not the beloved Prime Minister and interna­ Michael Joseph-Savage, nor tional statesman at the the inspiring Norman Kirk, founding of the United or the long serving Sir Keith Nations. Perhaps missing Holyoake. It was Peter was some focus on a depic­ Fraser. His statue now tion of, and explanation for, stands nearby Seddon's, in the final phase of his career, the garden of the Victoria the increasing conservatism University Law School, of his last term of office, facing the Parliament to A portrait, by Knrsh of Ottawa, presellted to Peter Fraser by particularly his relationship which he dedicated so the Polish 1/lelllbers of the Australnsiall-Polish Society ill with the trade union move- much of his life. 1944, with the i11scription : 'We express our deep a11d most ment. This was a more The respect in which sill cere gratitude for your gellerous help to Polish children significant aspect of his Fraser was held by the durillg the 111ost tragic ti111e ill our history' legacy than the nature of his respondents to my survey is relationship with John A. confirmed by the contribu- Lee, the subject of a chapter tors to a new biography, Peter the Stout Research Centre apprais­ by Erik Olssen. Fmser: Master Politician, the first ing the contribution of key political As is common in a forum such serious trea tment of the subject leaders to New Zealand history. It as that provided by the Stout Centre since the book by James Thorn in makes a better read than the book of conference, the most fascinating 1952. Edited by Margaret Clark of the first conference, devoted to Sir contributions were made by con­ the School of Political Science and Keith Holyoake, simply because temporaries of Fraser who provided Vol 8 No Septe111ber 1998 25 NEW z_EALAND STUDIES first hand accounts of their personal the same without )a net' helps on the origins of his early radical­ experiences li ving and working emphasise the simple humanity ism provides a sneak preview of the with him. Martyn Finlay, who underlying his beliefs and decisions. major biography of Fraser which he served in caucus with Fraser during The other chapters are more began and Michael Basset! (another his last term as Prime Minister, talks conventional historical accounts. contributor to this book) will finish. of Fraser the politician. Colin Some of them rely heavily on Peter Fra ser: Master Politician is a Aikman and Tom Larkin, officials reports written by one contempo­ pleasant synthesis of a wide variety who travelled with him on diplo­ rary source being brought to light. of perspectives on Fraser and a very matic missions overseas, describe This is especially noticeable in useful addition to New Zealand's Fraser the statesman. Alice Kemp Michael Ashby's contribution on political and historical literature. It Fraser, Peter Fraser's grand-step­ Fraser's foreign policy and Brian could be used as a source for daughter, depicts Fraser the family Easton's rather scrappy chapter on research on a specific aspect of his man (according to her, the Prime Fraser and the development of the career but, unusually for the genre, Minister of New Zealand had one nation-building state. There is a it is very easy to read. In portraying gla ss eye. Imagine that being kept a well-balanced presentation of the man it is in total greater than the secret today 1). Supporting this is a Fraser's accomplishments in sum of its parts. It should appeal to chapter by Hilary Stace noting the separate chapters describing his both the specialist and the general contribution made by Fraser's wife contribution to education policy reader. <S' janet to his career. This helps us (William Renwick), his attitude peek behind the fa~ade of the dour, towards advancing Maori interests SIMON SHEPPARD is a resident austere, even cold figure history (Claudia Orange), and his achieve­ researcher in the School of Political usually presents to us of Fraser. The ments as war-time Prime Minister Science and International Relations, simple statement that 'he was never ([an Wards). Michael King's chapter Victoria University of Wellington. ./, COMMENTARY by Brian Easton Remembering Peter Fraser hardly touched by the fact that Lee seems to have been a monetary This paper was originally given at a New Zea land Book Council seminar 011 'Peter reformer rather than a socialist). My Frn ser: Master Politicia11', 29 July, 1998. attitude- indeed that of much of HERE IS AN EASTON family My father seems to have dis­ my generation- was even more T tradition that when Peter tanced himself from Fraser. I think formed by what was seen to be a Fraser was a carpenter in Auckland, it was probably the expulsion of second betrayal, the conscription he stayed with my great-grandfa­ John A. Lee from the Labour Party. referendum. But as David Grant ther w hen he came to Wellington on Erik Olssen's contribution to Peter shows, Fraser was never a classic Red Fed business. Perhaps it is an Frnser: Master Politician is histori­ conscientious objector despite being exaggeration: he might have stayed ca ll y accurate- distinguishing itself jailed during the First World War. once, or called in on a visit. The from much of the other commen­ And to round the in tergenera tional connection seems to have con­ tary. Perhaps historicity has long story off, I asked my son 'who was tinued, for the tradition claims that been irrelevant, for the expulsion Peter Fraser?'. He replied 'is this a as Prime Minister Fraser attended has the mythical status of the trick question?', thought a bit, and my grandfather's funeral. Fraser moment when Labour chose a path asked eau tiousl y 'was he a Prime was a regular attender of funerals of cooperation with capitalism, Minister?'. Thus in five generations so that is possible too. rather than of socialism (a myth of the Easton family Fraser cycled 26 Vol 8 No 2 September 1998 .
Recommended publications
  • Bromley Cemetery Guide

    Bromley Cemetery Guide

    Bromley Cemetery Tour Compiled by Richard L. N. Greenaway June 2007 Block 1A Row C No. 33 Hurd Born at Hinton, England, Frank James Hurd emigrated with his parents. He worked as a contractor and, in 1896, in Wellington, married Lizzie Coker. The bride, 70, claimed to be 51 while the groom, 40, gave his age as 47. Lizzie had emigrated on the Regina in 1859 with her cousin, James Gapes (later Mayor of Christchurch) and his family and had already been twice-wed. Indeed, the property she had inherited from her first husband, George Allen, had enabled her second spouse, John Etherden Coker, to build the Manchester Street hotel which bears his name. Lizzie and Frank were able to make trips to England and to Canada where there dwelt Lizzie’s brother, once a member of the Horse Guards. Lizzie died in 1910 and, two years later, Hurd married again. He and his wife lived at 630 Barbadoes Street. Hurd was a big man who, in old age he had a white moustache, cap and walking stick. He died, at 85, on 1 April 1942. Provisions of Lizzie’s will meant that a sum of money now came to the descendants of James Gapes. They were now so numerous that the women of the tribe could spend their inheritance on a new hat and have nothing left over. Block 2 Row B No. 406 Brodrick Thomas Noel Brodrick – known as Noel - was born in London on 25 December 1855. In 1860 the Brodricks emigrated on the Nimrod. As assistant to Canterbury’s chief surveyor, J.
  • Martyn Finlay Memorial Scholarship

    Martyn Finlay Memorial Scholarship

    Martyn Finlay Memorial Scholarship Code: 366 Faculty: Law Applicable study: LLB Part III Closing date: 31 August Tenure: One year For: Financial Assistance Number on offer: One Offer rate: Annually Value: Up to $2,400 Description In memory of the late Hon Dr Allan Martyn Finlay QC, Member of Parliament for the North Shore 1946–1949, Vice President of the New Zealand Labour Party from 1956–1958, President from 1958–1963, Member for Waitakere 1963–1978, Attorney General and Minister of Justice in the Labour Government of 1972–1975 and in 1973-1974 led the New Zealand case against the French nuclear testing at Muroroa. He was a long time member of the University of Auckland Council. The main purpose of the Scholarship is to enable academically able students who are demonstrably suffering financial hardship to continue their undergraduate Law studies in Part Three at the University of Auckland. Selection process - Application is made to the Scholarships Office - A Selection Committee assesses the applications - The Scholarship is awarded by the University of Auckland Council on the recommendation of the Selection Committee Regulations 1. The Scholarship will be known as the Martyn Finlay Memorial Scholarship. 2. One Scholarship will be awarded each year for a period of one year and will be of the value of $2,400. 3. The Scholarship will be awarded to a candidate who is enrolled in Part III of an undergraduate Law Degree and has paid the fees, or arranged to pay the fees, for full-time study. 4. Selection will be based on academic merit, demonstrable financial hardship and commitment to the community.
  • The Politics of Post-War Consumer Culture

    The Politics of Post-War Consumer Culture

    New Zealand Journal of History, 40, 2 (2006) The Politics of Post-War Consumer Culture THE 1940s ARE INTERESTING YEARS in the story of New Zealand’s consumer culture. The realities of working and spending, and the promulgation of ideals and moralities around consumer behaviour, were closely related to the political process. Labour had come to power in 1935 promising to alleviate the hardship of the depression years and improve the standard of living of all New Zealanders. World War II intervened, replacing the image of increasing prosperity with one of sacrifice. In the shadow of the war the economy grew strongly, but there remained a legacy of shortages at a time when many sought material advancement. Historical writing on consumer culture is burgeoning internationally, and starting to emerge in New Zealand. There is already some local discussion of consumption in the post-war period, particularly with respect to clothing, embodiment and housing.1 This is an important area for study because, as Peter Gibbons points out, the consumption of goods — along with the needs they express and the desires they engender — deeply affects individual lives and social relationships.2 A number of aspects of consumption lend themselves to historical analysis, including the economic, the symbolic, the moral and the political. By exploring the political aspects of consumption and their relationships to these other strands, we can see how intense contestation over the symbolic meaning of consumption and its relationship to production played a pivotal role in defining the differences between the Labour government and the National opposition in the 1940s.
  • Welfare Reform Is It Socially Just

    Welfare Reform Is It Socially Just

    Welfare Reform – ‘is it social justice in action’ Major Campbell Roberts, The Salvation Army Social Policy & Parliamentary Unit KEYNOTE ADDRESS PRESENTED TO SWIS CONFERENCE AUCKLAND, 16 JULY 2015 One of the notable aspects of the contemporary political environment in New Zealand, and in other western democracies is welfare reform. Welfare reform it seems is the thing to do. The reasons often given for reform are the need for an improved system which better delivers to individuals and families. That this needs to happen cannot be denied. It only stands to reason that the needs of our modern contexts are dynamic and rapidly changing. A response to these changes requires a welfare system to alter and adjust. However, this need to improve the system, is also mixed with a desire by government to examine the cost of the system and reform it in a cost effective way. Again a reasonable thing to review, but one is often left wondering which reform objective wins the day effectiveness or cost. A far more important question in my view is that the welfare reforms envisaged and implemented are fair and equitable. In other words do they pass the test of being socially just? And it is this test of the social justice of the present welfare reform programme that I would like to explore with you this morning. The present Government has embarked on a welfare agenda that has seen them look at many areas of social service supports in housing, child abuse, income support, child care, and others. Do these reforms pass a social justice test? My experience in the last few weeks does raise questions about the effectiveness of those reforms.
  • NEW ZEALAND and the OCCUPATION of JAPAN Gordon

    NEW ZEALAND and the OCCUPATION of JAPAN Gordon

    CHAPTER SIX NEW ZEALAND AND THE OCCUPATION OF JAPAN Gordon Daniels During the Second World War His Majesty’s Dominions, Australia, New Zealand, Canada and South Africa shared a common seniority in the British imperial structure. All were virtually independent and co-operated in the struggle against the axis. But among these white-ruled states differ- ences were as apparent as similarities. In particular factors of geography and racial composition gave New Zealand a distinct political economy which shaped its special perspective on the Pacific War. Not only were New Zealanders largely British in racial origin but their economy was effectively colonial.1 New Zealand farmers produced agricultural goods for the mother country and in return absorbed British capital and manufac- turers. Before 1941 New Zealand looked to the Royal Navy for her defence and in exchange supplied troops to fight alongside British units in both world wars.2 What was more, New Zealand’s prime minister from 1940 to 1949 was Peter Fraser who had been born and reared in Scotland. His dep- uty, Walter Nash, had also left Britain after reaching adulthood.3 Thus political links between Britons and New Zealanders were reinforced by true threads of Kith and Kin which made identification with the mother country especially potent. These economic and political ties were con- firmed by the restricted nature of New Zealand’s diplomatic appara- tus which formed the basis of her view of the East Asian world. New The author is grateful to the librarian of New Zealand House and Mrs P. Taylor for their help in providing materials for the preparation of this paper.
  • 'About Turn': an Analysis of the Causes of the New Zealand Labour Party's

    'About Turn': an Analysis of the Causes of the New Zealand Labour Party's

    Newcastle University e-prints Date deposited: 2nd May 2013 Version of file: Author final Peer Review Status: Peer reviewed Citation for item: Reardon J, Gray TS. About Turn: An Analysis of the Causes of the New Zealand Labour Party's Adoption of Neo-Liberal Policies 1984-1990. Political Quarterly 2007, 78(3), 447-455. Further information on publisher website: http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com Publisher’s copyright statement: The definitive version is available at http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com at: http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-923X.2007.00872.x Always use the definitive version when citing. Use Policy: The full-text may be used and/or reproduced and given to third parties in any format or medium, without prior permission or charge, for personal research or study, educational, or not for profit purposes provided that: A full bibliographic reference is made to the original source A link is made to the metadata record in Newcastle E-prints The full text is not changed in any way. The full-text must not be sold in any format or medium without the formal permission of the copyright holders. Robinson Library, University of Newcastle upon Tyne, Newcastle upon Tyne. NE1 7RU. Tel. 0191 222 6000 ‘About turn’: an analysis of the causes of the New Zealand Labour Party’s adoption of neo- liberal economic policies 1984-1990 John Reardon and Tim Gray School of Geography, Politics and Sociology Newcastle University Abstract This is the inside story of one of the most extraordinary about-turns in policy-making undertaken by a democratically elected political party.
  • A Diachronic Study of Unparliamentary Language in the New Zealand Parliament, 1890-1950

    A Diachronic Study of Unparliamentary Language in the New Zealand Parliament, 1890-1950

    WITHDRAW AND APOLOGISE: A DIACHRONIC STUDY OF UNPARLIAMENTARY LANGUAGE IN THE NEW ZEALAND PARLIAMENT, 1890-1950 BY RUTH GRAHAM A thesis submitted to the Victoria University of Wellington in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Applied Linguistics Victoria University of Wellington 2016 ii “Parliament, after all, is not a Sunday school; it is a talking-shop; a place of debate”. (Barnard, 1943) iii Abstract This study presents a diachronic analysis of the language ruled to be unparliamentary in the New Zealand Parliament from 1890 to 1950. While unparliamentary language is sometimes referred to as ‘parliamentary insults’ (Ilie, 2001), this study has a wider definition: the language used in a legislative chamber is unparliamentary when it is ruled or signalled by the Speaker as out of order or likely to cause disorder. The user is required to articulate a statement of withdrawal and apology or risk further censure. The analysis uses the Communities of Practice theoretical framework, developed by Wenger (1998) and enhanced with linguistic impoliteness, as defined by Mills (2005) in order to contextualise the use of unparliamentary language within a highly regulated institutional setting. The study identifies and categorises the lexis of unparliamentary language, including a focus on examples that use New Zealand English or te reo Māori. Approximately 2600 examples of unparliamentary language, along with bibliographic, lexical, descriptive and contextual information, were entered into a custom designed relational database. The examples were categorised into three: ‘core concepts’, ‘personal reflections’ and the ‘political environment’, with a number of sub-categories. This revealed a previously unknown category of ‘situation dependent’ unparliamentary language and a creative use of ‘animal reflections’.
  • What Makes a Good Prime Minister of New Zealand? | 1 Mcguinness Institute Nation Voices Essay Competition

    What Makes a Good Prime Minister of New Zealand? | 1 Mcguinness Institute Nation Voices Essay Competition

    NATION VOICES ESSAY COMPETITION What makes a good About the author Brad is studying towards a BCom/ Prime Minister of BA majoring in Economics, Public Policy, International New Zealand? Relations and Political Science. He is a 2016 Brad Olsen Queen’s Young Leader for New Zealand after his work with territorial authorities, central government organizations and NGOs. He’s passionate about youth voice and youth participation in wider society. Leadership is a complex concept, necessitating vast amounts of patience, determination, and passion to work with others towards a position of improvement in the chosen field of expertise or service. Leaders not only bear the burden of setting the direction of actions or inactions for their team, but are also often accountable to stakeholders, with varying degrees of accountability and size of the cohort to which a leader is accountable. However, there is no more complex job in existence than the leadership of a country like New Zealand — this burden falls squarely on the Prime Minister, in charge of policy both foreign and domestic, all the while totally accountable to each and every citizen in his or her realm. Unsurprisingly, some make a better fist of it than others, with the essence of this good leadership a highly sought commodity. Three areas are critical to ensuring a Prime Minister can effectively lead — a measurement of how ‘good’ they are at their job — these fall under the umbrellas of political, social, and economic leadership ability. Politically, Prime Ministers must have foreign credibility, alongside the ability to form a cohesive support team. Socially a Prime Minster must not only recognize and promote popular ideas, but must also be relatable in part to the people.
  • CHAPTER 4 the 1980S: OTHER DOMESTIC

    CHAPTER 4 the 1980S: OTHER DOMESTIC

    CHAPTER 4 THE 1980s: OTHER DOMESTIC 06 CHALLENGES -40 GENEVA CONVET\IIIONS COVEM10V, (.0":1:;:`;713\S NO ATTACK ON %sk $sk 1\10 ATIO 0% ,p, cz' r NO aTTACK ON A pi,iFfor;:i,t444:7, ANDPEACE LET LA4 AND PEACE PREVAIL! Demonstration against mass destruction : Snowballers at a Nuclear Base. — Wiltshire Times CHAPTER 4 THE 1980s: OTHER DOMESTIC INITIATIVES 4.1 Introduction In the early 1980s a plethora of citizen organisations, especially strong in the UK, began to focus on nuclear weapons and international law. Although the UK Lawyers for Nuclear Disarmament (LND) helped inspire groups of non-lawyers such as Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament (CND), the International Law Against War (INLAW), the Institute of Law and Peace (INLAP) and Pax Legalis to use international law, it did not survive long. MacBride was an early influence on all these groups, and initiated further projects with a final goal of obtaining a request for an International Court of Justice (ICJ) advisory opinion through the UN. A variety of groups in the Netherlands, West Germany, Canada and the US challenged their governments policies in the courts. Inspired by the Greenham Women and the Nuremberg (1983) and London (1985) Tribunals, they worked collectively with lawyers taking creative actions which included the development of legally binding Nuclear Free Zones (NFZs) in cities, ports and states. Over 100 citizen-initiated Tribunals were held in Japan; and several states banned visits by nuclear warships through legislation or their constitutions (see 5.4 and 5.5). This chapter highlights some of these initiatives to illustrate how by the end of the decade the ground was fertile for pursuing the World Court Project (WCP) internationally.
  • Public Leadership—Perspectives and Practices

    Public Leadership—Perspectives and Practices

    Public Leadership Perspectives and Practices Public Leadership Perspectives and Practices Edited by Paul ‘t Hart and John Uhr Published by ANU E Press The Australian National University Canberra ACT 0200, Australia Email: [email protected] This title is also available online at: http://epress.anu.edu.au/public_leadership _citation.html National Library of Australia Cataloguing-in-Publication entry Title: Public leadership pespectives and practices [electronic resource] / editors, Paul ‘t Hart, John Uhr. ISBN: 9781921536304 (pbk.) 9781921536311 (pdf) Series: ANZSOG series Subjects: Leadership Political leadership Civic leaders. Community leadership Other Authors/Contributors: Hart, Paul ‘t. Uhr, John, 1951- Dewey Number: 303.34 All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying or otherwise, without the prior permission of the publisher. Cover design by John Butcher Images comprising the cover graphic used by permission of: Victorian Department of Planning and Community Development Australian Associated Press Australian Broadcasting Corporation Scoop Media Group (www.scoop.co.nz) Cover graphic based on M. C. Escher’s Hand with Reflecting Sphere, 1935 (Lithograph). Printed by University Printing Services, ANU Funding for this monograph series has been provided by the Australia and New Zealand School of Government Research Program. This edition © 2008 ANU E Press John Wanna, Series Editor Professor John Wanna is the Sir John Bunting Chair of Public Administration at the Research School of Social Sciences at The Australian National University. He is the director of research for the Australian and New Zealand School of Government (ANZSOG).
  • Politics of Forgetting: New Zealand, Greece and Britain at War by Martyn Brown. Australian Scholarly Publishing: Melbourne, 2019

    Politics of Forgetting: New Zealand, Greece and Britain at War by Martyn Brown. Australian Scholarly Publishing: Melbourne, 2019

    Politics of Forgetting: New Zealand, Greece and Britain at War By Martyn Brown. Australian Scholarly Publishing: Melbourne, 2019. RRP: AU$49.95 ISBN: 978-1-925801-68-2 Reviewed by C. Dimitris Gounelas and Ruth Parkin-Gounelas The conventional account of wartime relations between Greece, New Zealand and Britain is one of unwavering solidarity in the face of appalling odds, and few would question its truth as a general narrative. More recent approaches, however, have opened up the cracks in this tripartite relationship. Martyn Brown’s Politics of Forgetting contributes to the on-going analysis of these rifts, demonstrating through an impressive range of scholarly evidence the way the political situation in Greece triggered tensions which sometimes had far-reaching consequences. The need to maintain morale meant that differences were pasted over; wartime censorship and the destruction of compromising documents helped to maintain a narrative of unquestioning mutual trust. But with the gradual release of some previously-classified material, things have begun to look rather different. Brown’s focus is on the New Zealand Official War History Project, which appeared gradually after the war under the general editorship of Howard Kippenberger, who along with Bernard Freyberg played a dominant role in commanding New Zealand forces in the Mediterranean. Citing the French philosopher Ernest Renan, he argues that “forgetting” is crucial to any narrative of nation: we usually remember what enhances an image of something honorable and heroic. These qualities certainly applied to New Zealand’s immediate agreement to send troops to defend the small Balkan nation that at the time, in 1941, appeared to be the only country holding out against the advancing Axis forces on the continent of Europe.
  • Life Stories of Robert Semple

    Life Stories of Robert Semple

    Copyright is owned by the Author of the thesis. Permission is given for a copy to be downloaded by an individual for the purpose of research and private study only. The thesis may not be reproduced elsewhere without the permission of the Author. From Coal Pit to Leather Pit: Life Stories of Robert Semple A thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of a PhD in History at Massey University Carina Hickey 2010 ii Abstract In the Dictionary of New Zealand Biography Len Richardson described Robert Semple as one of the most colourful leaders of the New Zealand labour movement in the first half of the twentieth century. Semple was a national figure in his time and, although historians had outlined some aspects of his public career, there has been no full-length biography written on him. In New Zealand history his characterisation is dominated by two public personas. Firstly, he is remembered as the radical organiser for the New Zealand Federation of Labour (colloquially known as the Red Feds), during 1910-1913. Semple’s second image is as the flamboyant Minister of Public Works in the first New Zealand Labour government from 1935-49. This thesis is not organised in a chronological structure as may be expected of a biography but is centred on a series of themes which have appeared most prominently and which reflect the patterns most prevalent in Semple’s life. The themes were based on activities which were of perceived value to Semple. Thus, the thematic selection was a complex interaction between an author’s role shaping and forming Semple’s life and perceived real patterns visible in the sources.