Anderton Jim: Ministerial Statements — Earthquake—Christchurch Earthquake Christchurch—Extension of State of National Emergency 
Anderton Jim: Ministerial Statements — Earthquake—Christchurch Earthquake Christchurch—Extension of State of National Emergency 
[Volume:670;Page:16957] 
Hon JIM ANDERTON (Leader—Progressive) 
: 
 I think if many members of this House had gone through 5000 aftershocks they might be sleeping under the table too as a matter of fact. 
I have no major concern about a day of remembrance for the victims of the Canterbury earthquake but I have to say we will have a long time—decades—to remember and commemorate this disaster and the victims it has so brutally taken. The scars will be there for many many years for all to see. My immediate concern—and of course that of many others—is with the living and with finding naming releasing and farewelling the dead. A public holiday will not give us in Canterbury time off from the catastrophic conditions in Christchurch and their ramifications. Some areas of our city still do not have toilets water power or adequate means of support for those who have survived the quake. In spite of the best efforts of thousands of professional and volunteer workers to whom all in this House have paid tribute—and I join them in it—people in many areas still cannot cook or wash schools are damaged or destroyed houses are wrecked and workplaces and jobs have been completely eliminated. Winter is coming and heating will be a real challenge for the city. Already in the mornings the temperature drops to 3 4 or 5 degrees. 
If New Zealanders want to help I suggest that instead of having a national holiday everyone who is a wage earner consider donating a day’s pay. A rough calculation I did on the way up to Wellington last night shows that if the 2.2 million wage earners in New Zealand gave an after-tax contribution of the average day’s pay it would mean something like $700 million or 800 million going to the rebuilding and welfare of Christchurch. That contribution would actually do more to assist Canterbury at the present time than a national day of commemoration or anything else would. 
Christchurch will need a constructive contribution from all New Zealanders. Financial contributions are one way of doing it. On my doorstep on Saturday morning several very large cartons of safety equipment arrived from a safety company in Auckland to help those who are cleaning up the silt and mess that the streets of Christchurch are almost universally coated in. The safety equipment was extraordinarily well appreciated by the teams of volunteers who were out on the street all weekend and have been for nearly 2 weeks now. It was a tangible reminder that people are putting practical initiatives into action to help. I want to assure them and the whole of New Zealand that gestures like that are greatly appreciated in Christchurch and do more to raise the hopes and spirits of the people of Christchurch than any national day off could possible achieve. 
The resilience the spirit of Cantabrians is legendary—and I say that as an ex-Aucklander which I do not speak too loudly about in Canterbury these days. It is legendary and it is real. Comment has been made in the House about it. It is a most extraordinary experience to be in a community where people respond by thinking of just about everyone else except themselves. It is a tribute to the spirit of the people of Canterbury that they will prevail but they will need even in spite of themselves the rest of New Zealand by their side. I hope the expressions in this House today and the feelings of New Zealanders around the country will last for the many long years ahead when times will really be tough for many people in my city.