COUNTRY PROFILE

New Zealand, about 1,250 miles (2,012 km) southeast of Australia, consists of two main islands and a number of smaller, outlying islands so scattered that they range from the tropical to the Antarctic. The country is the size of Colorado. New Zealand's two main components are the North Island and the South Island, separated by the Cook Strait. New Zealand, the saying goes, has more sheep than people. Of course, in a country of just under 4 million people, that's not difficult. Most New Zealanders trace their roots to the United Kingdom, although over 10 percent have some indigenous Maori ancestry. New Zealand is also a country of rare beauty, ranging from endless beaches, lush forests and glacial mountains and lakes. New Zealand is no stranger to reform either. Drastic economic changes began in the mid-1980s, when the government started a drive to convert the protectionist, social welfare state into an open, liberal economy. The program has worked, but not without a few hiccups. Inflation has been tamed and GDP per head has been moving up toward the levels of the big West European economies. But given its small market and isolation, New Zealand relies heavily on trade, leaving it vulnerable to any slump in demand or price. There is freedom of religion with no established church. New Zealanders have increasingly turned away from God and to secularism. There has been evidence of a moving of the Spirit in the churches since the '60s. Charismatic renewal has brought widespread changes - a newness of worship, freedom in fellowship across denominational lines and reversal of the 70-year decline in the number of committed Christians.

OVERVIEW

Maoris were the first inhabitants of New Zealand, arriving on the islands in about A.D. 1000. Maori oral history maintains the Maoris came to the island in seven canoes from other parts of Polynesia. In 1642 New Zealand was explored by Abel Tasman, a Dutch navigator. British captain James Cook made three voyages to the islands, beginning in 1769. Britain formally annexed the islands in 1840. The Treaty of Waitangi (Feb. 6, 1840) between the British and several Maori tribes promised to protect Maori land if the Maoris recognized British rule. Encroachment upon the land by European settlers was relentless, however, and skirmishes between the two groups intensified. From the outset, the country has been in the forefront in instituting social welfare legislation. New Zealand was the world's first country to give women the right to vote (1893). It adopted old age pensions (1898); a national child welfare program (1907); social security for the aged, widows, and orphans, along with family benefit payments; minimum wages; a 40-hour work week and unemployment and health insurance (1938); and socialized medicine (1941). New Zealand fought with the Allies in both world wars as well as in Korea. In 1999, it became part of the U.N. peacekeeping force sent to East Timor to restore order after the bloody rampage of pro-Indonesian militias, who took revenge on the province for voting for independence from Indonesia.

FACTS

Population: 3.8 million
Capital: Wellington
Major language: English, Maori
Major religion: Christianity
Form of government: federal commonwealth
Monetary unit: 1 New Zealand dollar = 100 cents 
Main exports: metals, wood, machinery, wool
Head of government: Prime Minister
Head of state: Governor-General

LEADERS


Prime Minister:
Helen Clark

Helen Clark was elected Prime Minister of New Zealand on November 27, 1999. Her rise to the top of New Zealand politics is the culmination of almost thirty years of involvement with the Labour Party. Born in 1950, in Hamilton, Clark spent her first 12 years on the family sheep and cattle farm to the west of the city. She is the oldest of four girls. She joined the Labour Party in 1971 and in 1975 stood for election to Parliament for the first time, in the safe National seat of Piako. In 1981 Clark was elected as MP for Mt Albert. Nineteen years later, she has earned the unofficial title of 'Mother of the House' - the longest serving woman member among current MPs. In 1986 she was awarded the annual Peace Prize of the Danish Peace Foundation for her work in promoting peace and disarmament. She likes to keep fit through regular visits to the gym and has a passion for hiking and cross-country skiing. In January 1999 she climbed Africa's highest peak, the 5895m Mt. Kilimanjaro. Clark has been married to Dr. Peter Davis, professor of public health at the University of Otago's Christchurch clinical school, since 1981.

OBSTACLES TO MINISTRY

• Increase in diversity with many new cultures moving to the islands.

• Revival has brought unbelievers to the Lord, but many are still craving solid Christian teaching.

SPIRITUAL POWER POINTS

• Maori cultural revival and demands for compensation under the 1840 Treaty have shocked white majority.

• Maori resent their cultural dislocation, which has put them at a social disadvantage - high unemployment, relative poverty, crime, youth gangs, welfare needs are the result and the Church is not indigenous enough to handle the problems.

Special thanks to Patrick Johnstone's, "Operation World" publisher, ISBN# 0-310-40031-7; 
and country profiles by eCountries.com and Labour.org