Chinese New Zealanders

A Chinese New Zealander（Simplified Chinese: 华裔新西兰人）is a New Zealander of Chinese heritage. They are part of the ethnic Chinese diaspora (or Overseas Chinese). Chinese New Zealanders are the fifth largest ethnic group in New Zealand.

History

The first Chinese migrations to New Zealand took place on the strength of two invitations from New Zealand's Otago goldmining region to potential goldminers of Guangdong province in 1865. These original goldmining communities suffered extreme discrimination due to racist ideology, the economic competition they represented to the Europeans, and because of the implied 'disloyalty' within their transient, sojourner outlook. At the turn of the 20th century, overtly racist political ideology increased, resulting in the White New Zealand policy of immigration exclusion. The Chinese still managed to develop their communities in this period, and numbers were bolstered by the allowal of war refugees to arrive from Guangdong province during World War II. Chain migration from Guangdong continued until the new Communist Chinese regime stopped emigration. This original group of Cantonese migrants and their descendants are referred to in New Zealand as 'Old Generation' Chinese, and are now a minority within the overall Chinese population.

Ethnic Chinese communities from countries other than China began establishing themselves in New Zealand between the 1960s and 1980s. These included ethnic Chinese refugees from Cambodia, Vietnam and Laos following the conflicts and upheavals in those countries; Commonwealth (ie English educated) professional migrants from Hong Kong, Singapore and Malaysia; and Samoan Chinese as part of the substantial Pacific labour migrations of the 1970s.

Between 1986-96, a fundamental change in New Zealand’s immigration policy led to a substantial influx of ethnic Chinese business, investor, and professional migrants, particularly from Hong Kong and Taiwan. This period saw a spike in overall migration from the Asian region - including other Chinese people from East Asia and Southeast Asia. New Zealand's immigration system increasingly experienced the impact of global events. The post-Tiananmen crackdown in China saw a rise in Mainland Chinese asylum-seekers, and the fall of Suharto and the Jakarta riots nine years later had the same impact on Indonesian Chinese trying to gain New Zealand residency.

Although the origins and income of Chinese people in New Zealand began rapidly diversifying in this period, the conspicuous wealth and sudden visibility of the business and investor class of Hong Kong, Taiwanese and (to a lesser degree) Mainland Chinese migrants, led to an upsurge in racism against East-Asians in New Zealand. With the various Chinese groups now termed 'Asians' in popular argot, this wave of immigration (which did include non-Chinese East-Asians) was termed 'The Asian Invasion' in slang usage and occasionally in the media.

A phenomenon of this period was the 'satellite family' - where migrant parents were unable to establish their businesses successfully in New Zealand due to discrimination and a lack of connections, and returned to their home countries leaving their 1.5 generation children behind to complete their educations. Chinese New Zealanders brought by their parents to New Zealand while they were still of school-age are often referred to as '1.5 generation', as they are neither New Zealand born (2nd generation) nor did they choose willingly to migrate as first generation migrants. The 1.5 generation migrants who grew up as part of the 'Asian Invasion' of 1986-1996 tend to be viewed as a valuable cultural bridge between settled and new migrant communities.

The nationalist New Zealand First Party fought the 1996 general election on an anti-immigration and very thinly veiled 'anti-Asian' platform, winning the balance of power and altering immigration policy towards skills-based immigration.

From the late 1990s to the 2000s, skilled migrants from Mainland China became the new significant demographic group of Chinese newcomers. Although highly educated, they experienced serious ongoing job discrimination, underemployment, and sociopolitical marginalisation, generally due to perceptions about English-language ability and cultural differences. Although the first significant population of Chinese migrants from Mainland China to arrive in New Zealand since the Old Generation, this group represents a different era from the 'OGs' - the two Chinas they left behind are now worlds apart.

Mainland Chinese in New Zealand also include a substantial population of international students completing tertiary qualifications. Shunned by many of the above 'settled' Chinese population groups as transient and therefore not 'real' Chinese New Zealanders, they are often considered the Chinese group that is most socially isolated from mainstream New Zealand society, and currently experience the most discrimination and harrassment.

Demographics

At the last NZ census in 2001, Chinese New Zealanders account for 2.8% of the total population, the largest Asian group in NZ. Chinese New Zealanders, like other overseas Chinese in many other Western nations, are noted for academic and professional achievement.

Prominent Chinese New Zealander

Politicians

Pansy Wong, New Zealand's first ethnic Chinese MP, 1970s Generation Hong Kong migrant of Shanghainese heritage
Peter Chin (mayor), Mayor of Dunedin, 'Old Generation' Cantonese
Meng Foon, Mayor of Gisborne , 'Old Generation' Cantonese

Entertainment

Bic Runga, singer/songwriter, of Maori (indigenous New Zealander) and Malaysian Chinese parentage.
Li Ming Hu, known for her role as Li Mei Chen in New Zealand's popular TV show, Shortland Street, second-generation New Zealander of Singaporean and Taiwanese parentage.
Raybon Kan, comedian, second-generation New Zealander of Mainland Chinese parentage.

Others

Keith Ng, journalist & political commentator, 1.5 generation Hong Kong migrant
Mai Chen, constitutional lawyer, 1.5 generation Taiwanese migrant
Tze Ming Mok, journalist & writer, second generation New Zealander of Singaporean and Malaysian parentage