The 7-8pm hour on Sunday evenings on RNZ National features a news bulletin followed by One In Five – “a programme exploring the issues and experience of disability”. This is followed at 7:35pm with Voices – “a weekly programme that highlights Asians, Africans, indigenous Americans and more, from Iraq to India to Indonesia and East Asia, spanning Morocco to Madagascar, Belize to Brazil. These are our local-born and immigrant ethnic minority communities, New Zealanders with stories to share”. At 7:45pm there is The Week in Parliament. In this recording:
7.04pm - One in Five
Action and Adrenaline
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One in Five is courtside to watch Canterbury's powerchair football team in action. The squad has been working its way up the Trans-Tasman rankings and will face Australia again in October. But, as Katy Gosset finds, for many players with disabilities, the sport is also a chance to get lost in the moment and revel in a burst of adrenaline.
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"It's just one of those games," says Pat Edmonds, as he tries to pin down the fast-growing appeal of powerchair football.
"It's got adrenaline racing through your body as you smash that ball," he says.
And then there's the speed of the chairs on a small, indoor court: "You're going at 10kmph forward and backwards so its a quick game!"
As Katy Gosset finds, for many players with disabilities, the sport is also a chance to get lost in the moment and revel in a burst of adrenaline.
Pat Edmonds says powerchair football has taken off around the world with 28 countries now involved.
In New Zealand, the Canterbury squad is well established and players have already tackled an Australian national side on two occasions. Pat says the first time the New Zealanders were thrashed 31 nil but last year they closed the gap, losing 6 nil.
He says the Australians have a number of regional sides from which to choose their squad but the Canterbury team has struggled to get players involved.
"Once they actually experience it, they get hooked immediately."
Playing on a Knife-Edge
Pat Edmonds says the ability to play powerchair football successfully depends on how well the player operates the chair rather than how much function each individual has.
He says that means the game is played by many people who have muscular dystrophy as well as some who are "dangerously ill".
"There are people who play with ventilators and basically if they get hit, they can be killed."
As a result any contact is taken very seriously and anyone who receives a red card must leave, not just the court, but the entire building.
"If you have a dangerous hit, well, you're gone."
He agrees it places a responsibility on all players to compete safely and to show respect for each other.
"If you play it well, you don't get hit. You can spin around. You can kick. You can be part of a sports team."
And once players have a had a taste of the sport, they seem eager to carry on, he says. "You know they're living life on a knife edge but, in saying that, they love the game."
The Young Gun
While Pat, at 53 is the oldest player, Luke Alderton is the youngest - and the Christchurch teenager is already a veteran of two Trans-Tasman clashes.
Like Pat he plays in a "Strike Force", a top-of-the-range wheelchair, designed in the United States for powerchair football.
The chairs can get up to 10kmph in a matter of seconds and Luke says it took him a few months before he could put the ball "sort of in the right direction".
He believes the sport is the only one that provides a truly competitive team environment for powerchair users and he says serious competitions can be tough.
"In a final [when] you're down one nil, the pressure to score a goal [is] really hard and you have to be able to soak it up throughout the 40 minute match."
Luke says a competitive game also offers a good mental challenge. "Although it doesn't involve your body moving, your brain is constantly going. It's like doing a three hour exam."
Luke's mother, Ali Alderton, is courtside at today's game, not as a parent - but a coach.
She and her husband, Steve, both volunteered to coach to help their son access the sport.
"Luke really enjoys it and we want to make sure that he can participate and so we've decided that we'll help out as much as we can."
She believes playing sport is another part of Kiwi life that she wants her son to experience.
"Being able to play something that is competitive and fun and high-speed, high impact in a souped-up chair, they love it, so it's really important."
And she says the sport also offers time out from some of the physical and medical challenges many of the players face.
"The opportunity that sport gives them is a time to be in their chairs, not to think about any of that and just to compete and I think that's really healthy."
The Newbie
Five weeks after her first game, Diane Williams is already hooked. She enjoys the speed and can't wait to get her own wheelchair adapted.
"I love it, I absolutely love it," she says.
She admits sometimes the action is so fast that spectators put cones around her assistance dog on the side lines to ensure the ball won't hit him.
Five years ago Diane had a stroke which prevented her from using one side of her body and stopped her playing the many sports she enjoyed, such as indoor netball, soccer and rugby
"To have a stroke one day, that was all over. So I needed something to take its place."
It wasn't until she came across powerchair football that she found the fast-paced option she'd been looking for.
"You don't need to be fast-paced if you can't or don't want to be but I like being fast."
Topics: disability, sport
Regions: Canterbury
Tags: Trans-Tasman sport, powerchair football, muscular dystrophy, parasport
Duration: 23'41"
7.30pm - Voices
Langar for all humanity
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"Langar is about embracing every human, about feeding everyone. All are welcome to partake in the Sikh community meal."
Little is known about the Wellington Sikh community which first opened its gurdwara or temple doors to the public in 1997. After their Sunday prayers, Lynda Chanwai-Earle joins the community as they explain langar and the humanitarian philosophies behind this shared lunch - created for the masses so no one will go hungry.
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Langar is about embracing every human, about feeding everyone, no matter your faith, ethnicity, gender or otherwise, all are welcome to partake in our community lunch.
Little is known about our Wellington Sikh community which first opened its temple doors to the public with the official launch of their Gurdwara (temple) in 1997 in Porirua East.
After their Sunday prayers, Lynda Chanwai-Earle joins the community as they explain langar and the humanitarian philosophies behind this shared lunch - created for the masses so no one will go hungry.
I’m learning more when I attend their langar after their Sunday prayers – observing food preparation by all members of the community, old and young, male and female.
It’s Sunday morning and the busy clatter of dishes along with fragrant aromas of curry greets you upon arrival. Langar is the Punjabi term used in the Sikh faith for “community kitchen” where food is served in a Gurdwara to all visitors for free and right now langar is being prepared in the large kitchen that belongs to the New Zealand Sikh Society – Wellington branch.
The Sikh langar, or free kitchen, was started by the first Sikh Guru, Guru Nanak to uphold the principle of equality between all people, revolutionary in the caste-ordered society of 16th-century India where Sikhism began. The tradition of langar embraces the ethics of sharing, community and oneness of all humankind.
The point about langar is that we serve selflessly, we try to give as much as we can; ingredients, money or if you don’t have money you just help out in the kitchen – Urwashi Singh, Committee Member of the NZ Sikh Society, Wellington Inc.
Sikh’s hail from Punjab, Northern India and have been living in NZ over 100 years. Recently their population has grown to almost 20,000, mostly based in Auckland, but around 1500 Sikhs live in the Wellington region.
I am literally being passed from one generous guide to the next as what feels like the whole Sikh community show me the types of vegetarian dishes prepared and most importantly explain the humanitarian philosophies behind their meal – created for the masses so no one will go hungry.
At the langar, only vegetarian food is served (and absolutely no alcohol) to ensure that all people, regardless of diet, can eat.
I am told that food will be served to all humanity regardless of faith, background age, ethnicity, gender or social status.
Urwashi Singh is a committee member of the New Zealand Sikh Society – Wellington. Her family help out with food preparation every Sunday.
She introduces me to the team gathered in the kitchen, a large group of men and women working behind the stoves and at the sinks.
The pat-pat-pat of balls of roti dough as they’re flipped between each hand and flattened looks easy but each person here will have been practicing to make roti from the time they first learned to walk.
Taught by their parents, roti making is a real Indian tradition and rotis are staple part of the diet like rice is to the Chinese.
Nirmal Singh is also a committee member of Wellington’s Sikh Society. He explains the philosophies behind langar while extra roti and chai tea is prepared for the people who have served and not yet eaten.
Nirmal’s wife Pritpal Singh is helping young men cook the rising roti pancakes, making sure the pancakes don’t burn as they flatten the air bubbles out.
Alongside Pritpal broad shouldered Jaspinder Singh is being teased for being the star chai tea maker. Apparently he makes more chai at the langar than he does for his wife at home. He shows me the recipe as he crushes the tea masalas in a mortar and pestle; large and small cardamom pods, cloves, fennel seeds and cinnamon.
Jaspinder tosses the spices, many tea bags, sugar and lots of water into a large pot and gets the chai brewing before adding almost equal parts milk.
The brewing chai is brought to the boil around four times before the fragrant, sweet and hot chai is ready and gratefully received by the hard working helpers.
He is saying that his chai tea is the best in the world!
In the gurdwara, after the morning prayers the final ritual is the taking of prashad (small offering of sweet semolina). Then the community move towards the adjoining large hall space. Mats for seating have been laid in lengths, next to plastic strips for the food.
There are no tables. Everyone will be seated in lines (pangat) cross legged on the floor next to each other, no matter the gender, age or social standing. This is to demonstrate the etiquette of the egalitarian community.Unsure of the reasons behind some of the rituals Urwashi kindly explains to me what one needs to be mindful of before entering the temple or gurdwara;
It is always shoes off and head covered to show respect for our Guru. The Guru Granth Sahib (Holy Book) is a live and sacred person to us, so we show respect for the Guru Granth Sahib as we would for our elders.
Before anyone sits to eat waheguru or prayers of gratitude are expressed for the food that may go something like this;
S Krishna Singh Ji Khlasa,
Waheguru Ji Ka Khalsa!
Waheguru Ji Ki Fateh!
Sat Sri Akal!
I’m seated next to Urwashi while young men from the community serve dishes. Urwashi explains what is being served into the large platters in front of us; “As minimum there is one lentil curry, one mixed vegetable curry, one raita (yoghurt based condiment with sliced cucumber), salad, one sweet rice desert along with roti/chapati and rice.”
Urwashi tells me that no one will go hungry as long as langar is available;
The langar is open to everyone, even if the langar is finished we are very much willing to open the kitchen again and feed that person, because we see God in that person.
Topics: spiritual practices, food, life and society, language, refugees and migrants
Regions: Wellington Region
Tags: cultural practices, identity, language, Sikhism, Wellington
Duration: 10'38"
7.45pm - The Week in Parliament
Bill of Rights Act turns 25 and is the subject of discussion in the Chamber and Committee Rooms; Government and Opposition trade barbs during final reading of Health & Safety Reform legislation, which passes with just minutes to spare before the House rises for a one-week adjournment; Speaker grants snap debate on Children's Commissioner's latest State of Care report; United Future leader Peter Dunne says resignation of NZTA's chief executive creates opportunity for restructuring; ACT leader David Seymour's Sale and Supply of Alcohol (Extended licensing hours during Rugby World Cup), passes final reading; Electoral Commission chairman Sir Hugh Williams laments declining youth enrolment rates in a submission to the Justice and Electoral Committee's inquiry into the 2014 election; Health Committee calls for submissions on Maryan Street's petition calling for an inquiry into public attitudes towards euthanasia.