“Sorry,” “arohamai,” “对不起,” “ma bad.” Kiwis tend to over apologise for everything – sorry for being late, sorry for moving your bag, sorry for ever so slightly scuffing your foot on the bus. But what about when ‘sorry’ really means something? The Poll Tax was a tonnage restriction and tax on all Chinese arrivals to New Zealand from 1881 to 1944. Fourteen years agoContinueContinue reading “Started from the Bottom Now We’re Here: 14 Years Since the Poll Tax Apology”
Tag Archives: renee liang
Blood, Sweat and Tears: Interview with Hweiling Ow
Comedy for stage, horror for screen; evil gnomes, fish tanks and everything in between. Kiwese caught up with PJ-born actor, producer and ardent coriander opponent Hweiling Ow about her life as a creative in Auckland, to play or not to play the Asian roles, and what makes her tick. NB: PJ is Petaling Jaya in Malaysia, not Peter Jackson. HweilingContinueContinue reading “Blood, Sweat and Tears: Interview with Hweiling Ow”
When the Chinese Kid Drops Maths for Art: Interview with Allan Xia
Chengdu. An old lady in slippers fossicks about in the bright yellow leaves for fallen nuts from the local ginkgo tree. Bananas on pedicabs roll past mahjong players and open air eateries. Bundled up babies flail about like pudgy starfish on the laps of knitting grannies. The pace is chill, the sun shines, the sky is blue. This is the environment where Allan Xia 夏昊禹,ContinueContinue reading “When the Chinese Kid Drops Maths for Art: Interview with Allan Xia”
The Literary Blossom: Interview with Renee Liang
Last month, I managed to catch up with poet, playwright, paediatrician and mother of two Renee Liang while she was in Wellington on locum at Hutt Hospital. Juggling a baby, a chocolate cake and a multi-faceted career, we commenced. Hey Renee! The Chinese name your Yeh Yeh (paternal grandfather) gave you was ‘Literary Blossom,’ as opposedContinueContinue reading “The Literary Blossom: Interview with Renee Liang”
Banana Split
Kristen Ng aka Kiwese went to the Diverse Bananas, Global Dragons’ Conference in Auckland, to be told she was in fact white on the inside, but her yellow skin gave her great job prospects in the corporate business world. I was born in Wellington. So was my dad. My mum was born and raised in Gisborne.ContinueContinue reading “Banana Split”
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