THIS IS HOW IT IS NOW. This is the country we’ve become. These are New Zealand’s priorities – even in the grim business of honouring the dead.
A man, his wife and baby daughter, travelling by car along a French highway, are reported to have veered into the path of an oncoming truck. In the ensuing collision, the man and his wife are killed and their baby seriously injured.
There is no other word for this bare summary of facts except tragedy. To the family and friends of the deceased is owed the sympathy of all decent and caring people.
Except that the victim of this tragic traffic accident was something more than just a man – he was a former member of the All Blacks – New Zealand’s world-beating rugby team. And that is why, for the past three or four days, the country’s newspapers have given this story saturation coverage. The life story of Jerry Collins, his history with both the Hurricanes provincial rugby team and the All Blacks, is related in lavish detail, with considerable empathy and undoubted pride. When his body arrives back in New Zealand, Jerry Collins funeral service will attract thousands of mourners.
An 80-year-old lawyer dies following a six year struggle with prostate cancer.
Once again, all decent people will acknowledge a life lived well, and with considerable success in the nation’s courtrooms, and express their deep regret at his passing.
Except this man was no ordinary lawyer, but the defender of some of New Zealand’s most notorious criminals. Sir Peter Williams QC was the barrister for Ron Jorgesson, the Bassett Road machine-gun murderer, and Terry Clark – a.k.a “Mr Asia”. He also defended Arthur Alan Thomas, the man accused of, and then ultimately pardoned for, the murders of Harvey and Jeanette Crewe. President of the Howard League for Penal Reform for 30 years, Sir Peter was an outspoken critic of the way New Zealand treated the men and women it locked up. Abon vivant and wicked raconteur, he will be remembered as one of this country’s most colourful legal practitioners.
We know all this because, aware of the seriousness of his illness, the nation’s newspapers had prepared fulsome obituaries to mark his passing.
A trade union leader loses his battle with acute depressive illness.
In the NZ Herald of 10/6/15 the death of Peter Conway, former Secretary of the New Zealand Council of Trade Unions – at over 300,000 strong, this country’s largest voluntary organisation – merited precisely 63 words.
More than 30 years devoted to improving the lives, wages and working conditions of tens-of-thousands of New Zealand workers was considered unworthy of even a photograph. The stories of how he campaigned alongside the British miners in their doomed struggle against the government of Margaret Thatcher; or, how he organised scores of young New Zealanders to travel to the socialist republic of Nicaragua in the early 1980s to pick coffee under the banner of “The Harry Holland Brigade”; neither of these warranted a mention. Nor did the fact that in his 40s he went back to university to attain a master’s degree in economics – the better to defend the interests of working people against the bosses’ apologists. That he was a fine singer and accomplished player of both the guitar and mandolin was, likewise, left out of the tiny side-bar story.
Peter Conway was a man whose efforts in the cause of social justice touched the lives of a huge number of New Zealanders; a man who will be remembered and mourned by clothing workers and shop assistants, truck drivers and storepersons. Of him, the employers’ organisation, Business New Zealand said: “Peter was an industrial leader of the highest integrity and his passing is a sad loss to New Zealand.” The Greens co-leader, Metiria Turei, recalled that: “As Secretary of the Council of Trade Unions, Peter could still be found running a picket line at 3 in the morning, he never shirked the hard work, and never stopped fighting for a fairer New Zealand.” And, of his friend and comrade, the former Secretary of the EPMU – now leader of the Labour Party – Andrew Little said, simply: “He was a good man and he will be held in the hearts of the labour movement.”
None of these tributes were considered worthy of quotation by the NZ Herald, and, to be fair, by most of the rest of the mainstream news media. Because, when all is said and done, Peter was not an All Black, nor a renowned barrister – he was a trade unionist.
Peter’s death recalls to mind the following verses by James K. Baxter, which seem to have been written for just such a man as Peter Conway:
The man who talks to the masters of Pig Island
About the love they dread
Plaits ropes of sand, yet I was born among them
And will lie some day with their dead.
Kia ora Chris.
Thanks for this eulogy. That the bought out media would not publish such a thing is only to be expected.
One day this country will deserve such people as Mr Peter Conway. Meanwhile I am grateful that occasionally we get them anyway.
And JK Baxter’s poetry is brilliantly chosen. How unwilling the masters of Pig Island are to be loved, and how vital it is to go on trying.
Very true – a remarkable man who touched the lives of hundreds, and a privilege to have known him. Highly regarded by all. Here in the UK I have been searching the NZ press for a full obituary or extensive article that chronicled his life – and am bewildered by the lack of decent coverage. Here in the UK he would have got a half page in The Guardian – with a photo!
“None of these tributes were considered worthy of quotation by the NZ Herald, and, to be fair, by most of the rest of the mainstream news media. Because, when all is said and done, Peter was not an All Black, nor a renowned barrister – he was a trade unionist.”
Yes, I noticed the same, and it is deeply depressing, the state of our society, and the mainstream media especially.
Two things come to mind, “depressive illness” and “unionist”.
Depressive illness is still not understood by many out there, and in a society where we constantly get bombarded with “positive” messages about how to be successful, how to “sell yourself” well at work, in personal affairs, and how important it is to stay on top of things, most will simply avoid thinking too much about not fitting the “ideal” that is being promoted.
People have become very individualistically minded, some actually even rather greedy persons, who are too busy with “getting ahead” one way or another, and the consumerist brain washing has resulted in too many seeking pleasures in material things. Competitive and “innovative” minds are in demand, not carefully reflecting, analysing and planning ones.
So perhaps the media, staffed by persons of similar mindset, felt that it may be better to not talk about Peter Conway’s illness and death too much.
Then the word “unionist” has become associated with something perceived as “old fashioned”, “backward” and not relevant anymore, after decades of what some call “neoliberal”, pro private effort, pro competition, pro business and “entrepreneurship” conditioning.
There were reasons for what happened in the mid 1980s and early 1990s, and the forces that brought the change wanted to make sure that the “new direction” will become irreversible. Unions were attacked with the Employment Contracts Act, and after most unions packed their bags (and hoped it would only be a temporary defeat), unionism has become a rather marginal area of involvement and activity.
The younger generation does mostly not relate to unions and their messages, they know little else, and have adapted, and are the challenge for the future for the whole political establishment.
So the MSM may also have felt, well, he was one of the “old guard”, sort of, who stuck to ideas no longer relevant. Hence the little attention, although I think Stuff.co made a little more effort to write a piece on Peter Conway’s life and work, but yet also rather short.
We are no longer a society where “collective” and “joint effort” has the same meaning, and sombre, hard work to offer better employment and social outcomes to most workers, seems to not get the same level of respect as that of young, successful sports stars and other celebrated personalities.
And one Mr Talley was honoured under the Queens Honours list, raising further questions. Times have changed, and we should reflect and be worried, about the future.
I always cherished Peter Conway’s take on economic matters, a balance to comments from the many trading bank economists, that is now gone.
RIP, and thanks, Peter Conway!
Excellent reply. While I may have disagreed with some of Mr Conway’s causes and assessments he was undoubtedly a person with the noblest of intentions and as such a great loss.
Your observation that a meritorious life spent in pursuit of the betterment of “all” passes with so little mention when one that is spent in pursuit of wealth and self aggrandisement gains a knighthood is a perceptive summation of the bleak corruption of the spirit in New Zealand.
Thank you, Chris well written. Perhaps if Peter Conway had been an All Black or businessman or politicisan, as well as trade unionist, the msm would’ve thought him worthy of greater recognition for his achievements.
Peter Conway probably achieved more than any All Black, businessman, or most politicians ever have.
A valid and very touching point Chris.Though not entirely unexpected when one considers where the MSM allegiances are. They are owned by business and capital and so they reflect business and capital.
But anyone who has played any part in unionism in Aotearoa will note the passing of a significant person and remember what once was.
Well said, Chris. Peter was your classic kiwi good bloke, he conducted himself with dignity and humility and sadly that also may not be newsworthy any more.
Thanks for the tributes. Seems our bought and owned and lame major media outlets are just too busy planning their liquid lunches and corporate kissing cocktail schmoozing parties – to be real and ethical in properly acknowledging our heros who have passed on.
Lame stream media meant for entertaining ; brainwashing and manipulating the masses with fluff and a lot of propaganda biased nonsense.
We still boycott these waste of time and space bits of journalistic insanity.
Especially some of those biased commentators on Q & A and occasionally on the Nation.
What an extraordinarily talented man as well…
Those who were the antithesis of what Conway stood for and achieved…well…it is no wonder that he and others like him…haven’t yet received the honor due to them.
But they will eventually.
Typical of Herald ,if he was a National man he’d would have had more words, and unionists don’t rate with them or their owners , I never knew him but it sounds to me he didn’t need their words anyway,he stands taller than all of them .You know it, his family know it ,and a lot of NZs knew it, that’s what counts.
I blame john Key
I was so annoyed by TVNZ’s obsession with Jerry Collins that I wrote of my anger on their Facebook page. I received no support that I can see but received perhaps hundreds of responses of virtually hate mail. I have no regrets about stirring them up but am disappointed that it was so easy. Is this all NZ really is?
[Offensive comment deleted. We are considering laying a complaint with your ISP. Do not post here again. – ScarletMod ]
Thanks for your wonderful words Chris.
I had the privilege of working as a Union Organiser in the Northern Storeworkers Union and alongside Peter in the mid 80’s. He was quiet (most of the time) but incredibly sharp. We suffered the abysmal defection by Rob Campbell and many within the Auckland unions were suspicious of Peter but he showed where he stood and demonstrated his commitment again and again.
I left to work for New Zealander’s in a public service role and lost touch with Peter and others within the movement for some years. I reconnected as a senior PSA delegate and spoke with him from time to time over the last few years, but never got to have a sit down catch up, and now never will.
Peter, to me at least, stands alongside some of the recent ‘big’ names from the trade union movement and rightly so.
Peter’s passing is a tragedy for his family and a loss to each and every working New Zealander, even if they hate unions.
Thanks Chris.
I am surprised that you are surprised at the lack of coverage given by the NZ Herald to Peter Conway’s death. The New Zealand Herald has never been a left or even centre-left publication. It has no interest in any in depth coverage of union affairs which it probably considers will not sell newspapers or attract online readers. It long ago stopped being a publication of record and lurched even further to the right.
When Mr Collins and his wife died the editor probably noticed a surge in interest online and continued along with many other media outlets to feed the demand with more and more stories about this tragedy.
Well …it transpires Chris has a nice tenor voice…and in typical vogue of the Irish trade unionist movement …was music to my ears.
But ! …the fragmentation of the labour movement into small business’s changes it somewhat…we are not in the 1890’s – 1930’s anymore.
And it is precisely that fragmentation that causes the angst of the labour movement.
However …juxtaposing that original movement with what we have now…despite that fragmentation…we now have a situation whereby certain opportunists using the guise of neo liberalism have taken advantage of this modern interpretation of labour…and in doing so have legislated in a manner to further divide what was originally the ‘ working class ‘….
Aka small business owners.
The deception is subtle.
And one which is designed to ensure under the guise of small business operations that those who are in fact nothing more than working class remain as such.
While these neo liberals focus on geo politics and international trade they are quite content to let these small business operators scrabble for the crumbs of an ever decreasing slice of the pie.
The downwards pressure on those who draw wages are a good sign to these neo liberals of the assuredness of their future prosperity .
In short – a ready source of cheap labour to which the current Finance Minister once stated ” we should be glad we have a low wage economy as this encourages foreign investment.”
Perhaps we would do better to expose the wanton avarice of these types constantly and to pressure them into the very legislative mechanisms that PROTECTED OUR INDUSTRY’S AND OUR WORKERS – SUCH AS TRADE TARIFFS.
Lets set a few legislative measures that truly protect our manufacturing and research base along with our workers that ENHANCES our manufacturing economy apart from just relying on dairy and primary industry’s.
That in tandem with supporting our unions along with small developing , home grown industry’s …..
And to do that- means mobilization of the unions and small business owners ….and in light of the TTPA and TISA …needs an information program that highlights just what this neo liberal govt is aiming for. And who it seeks to enrich.
And that certainly isn’t the working poor or small business owners.
Great song and an excellent tribute to Peter Conway, Chris!
Your voice is in as fine fettle as ever. I always remember your singing at many a New Labour gathering! 🙂
A new generation needs to hear those songs now more than ever!
Any chance we can have the words to the song printed on here ?
Comments are closed.