Charting over 100 years of Indian migration to New Zealand

0 Comments read Migration

By Neena Bhandari

Sydney, 10.12.2007 (IANS): Did you know an Anglo-Indian from Goa, Edward Peters, was the first to discover gold in the Otago region of New Zealand that led to the gold rush of the 1860s?

Such nuggets of information can be found in the book “Indian Settlers: The History of a New Zealand South Asian Community” published by Otago University Press.

From low-wage work to high-profile jobs, from facing discrimination to integrating with the mainstream, the book traces the journey of Indian migrants in New Zealand.

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Bay Watching in a Burqini

0 Comments read Cricket & Sports, Gender
Nevine Houri, Mecca Laalaa and Malaak Mourad at a multicultural festival in Darling Harbour, Sydney. Photo Credit: © Lakemba Sport and Recreation Club

By Neena Bhandari

Sydney, 31.03.2007 (WFS): As a child, Nevine Houri was petrified of water, a phobia developed after a near-drowning incident while growing up in the suburbs of western Sydney, far from the country’s beautiful beaches. Today, she is one of the three Muslim women who have seized the opportunity to join a small, all-women group of surf lifesavers in Australia.

These women were trained under Surf Life Saving Australia‘s (SLSA) $600,000 national programme – On the Same Wave – funded by the Australian government to directly bring Muslim and other culturally and linguistically diverse communities to the fore.

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Dr Jacquelin Perry, pioneer of Gait, who aided polio survivors

0 Comments read Disability, Gender, Health & Science, Poliomyelitis
Photo Credit: © Neena Bhandari

By Neena Bhandari

St Louis (Missouri, USA): For the growing number of polio survivors facing new challenges with the onset of post polio syndrome, world renowned polio specialist Dr. Jacquelin Perry says, “Listen to your body. Feel the aches and pains. Don’t Push. Control your destiny”.

Infantile paralysis or polio epidemics struck America from the 1920s to late 1950s afflicting 1.8 million children. The disease killed some and disabled others.

“The effects were like spatter paint. If you had a lot of paint, you had a lot of damage, while others were just touched lightly. Polio is a nerve disease that damages or kills anterior horn cells. The survivors were left with a damaged neuro-muscular system”, explains Dr Perry.

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