Differences in culture

Press, 1 March 1982, Page 6

Differences in culture

Shaking hands or arriving on time for an appointment might seem a matter of course to most people, but it was one cultural difference aired -by delegates at the Pacifica Conference which ended in Christchurch yesterday.

About 180 Polynesian and Asian women travelled from throughout New Zealand to spend three days at the Christchurch Town Hall discussing topics ranging from fertility to spirituality. The conference aim was to promote understanding of different cultures and their part in the New Zealand way of life.

Mrs Ola Toimata, of Hamilton, and Miss Ann Auta, of Palmerston North, agreed that ethnic minorities were in danger of losing their cultural heritage. Mrs

Toimata, a Niue Islander who has lived in New Zealand since 1964, said yesterday that cultural diversity needed to be shared. “We are reaching out." she said. Miss Auta, aged 19. was one of the youngest of the delegates, who ranged from post-primary school pupils to grandmothers. Miss Auta, a first-generation New Zealand Samoan, said that delegates were trying to understand their own cultures as well as living in' a “white man’s world.” Even differences in etiquette such as keeping to a timetable, or greeting people with hugs and kisses rather than a handshake, were important. She cited an example, where wedding guests were taken aback when she hugged them. “One of the men thought it was a come-on,". she said.