Dzieci polskie w Nowej Zelandii. Obóz w Pahiatua (1944–1949) - WITOLD CHMIELEWSKI (Autor) (Kraków, 2022)
https://wydawnictwo.ignatianum.edu.pl/dzieci-polskie-w-nowej-zelandii.htm
Monografia naukowa
Polish children who had been deported deep into the Soviet Union together with their parents in the early years of the Second World War experienced hunger, misery and suffering. Many of them died of exhaustion and lost their parents and siblings. After their evacuation to Iran by the army of General Władysław Anders, they were sent to Polish settlements that were built on several continents during the war. Some of them were sent to New Zealand on the invitation of Prime Minister Peter Fraser on 31 October 1944. They settled in the Pahiatua camp. On 1 November 1944, there were 838 Poles in the camp, including 733 children and youths up to 20 years of age. An important role in bringing the refugees to New Zealand was played by Maria and Kazimierz Wodzicki as well as Janet Fraser, the Prime Minister’s wife. The Polish refugees were warmly welcomed and provided with very good conditions for their stay. The camp administration and a health service were organised. A Polish nursery school, two primary schools, a general education junior high school and a tailoring course were established. Education in a patriotic spirit was given prominence. Every effort was made to prevent the children from being denationalised. A magazine called ‘Głos Kiwi’ (‘The Voice of the Kiwi’) was published. The graduates of the Polish schools continued their education in Catholic secondary schools in New Zealand. Some of the young people were trained and took up jobs in various sectors of the economy. The camp was closed in the first months of 1949. By May 1950, 66 of Pahiatua’s children had left New Zealand, 49 of whom returned to Poland. The others settled permanently in New Zealand, cultivating the Polish language, customs, traditions and culture in their families.
Keywords: pedagogika; language commodification; language policy; politics of language; Russian language; sociolinguistics