Kiwi Indians Lash Out Over Jones’ Surname Remark
The Indian community in New Zealand has strongly criticised Regional Development Minister Shane Jones after his remarks at New Zealand First’s annual meeting sparked outrage over the weekend.
As reported by RNZ, speaking on Saturday ahead of an immigration announcement, Jones said the country’s demography was “changing irreversibly” and pointed to common Indian surnames such as “Singh” and “Patel” as evidence of the shift. “If you want to change in a profound way the culture, the character, the make-up of your society, go and campaign on it,” he told reporters.
The comments have been met with anger from community leaders, who see them as part of a long-standing pattern of targeting minorities for political gain. Historian Harpreet Singh, whose family has lived in New Zealand for over 120 years, said such rhetoric was not new. “For over a century, attacking communities like Asian, Indian, Chinese and others has been the calling card for politicians. It’s a pattern used to deal with bad economy and bad policies,” he told RNZ’s First Up.
Singh explained that the prevalence of surnames such as Singh and Patel stems from cultural naming traditions and historic migration from Punjab and Gujarat.
He warned that remarks like Jones’ not only distort history but also hurt generations of Indian New Zealanders. “From a mental health perspective, you feel excluded, it affects kids at school, it affects job prospects, it affects hate in the workplace. You can’t keep using catcall racism to get votes,” he said, RNZ reported.
According to RNZ, third-generation Kiwi Ajit Singh Randhawa also defended the community’s legacy. “For more than a century, names like Singh and Patel have stood for hard work, sacrifice and nation-building in New Zealand,” he said. “Singh and Patel are not just surnames, they are signatures written into New Zealand’s story of grit, enterprise and belonging”, as quoted by RNZ.
From early farming contributions in Waikato to building small businesses and shaping professional sectors, Indian migrants and their descendants have played a pivotal role in New Zealand’s development.
A recent documentary, Punjab to Aotearoa, highlighted how the community grew from just six people recorded in the 1881 Census to New Zealand’s third-largest ethnic group in 2023.
According to RNZ, community curator Shanti Patel echoed these sentiments, noting the Indian community’s contributions since the 1960s in market gardening, retail, dairy, and later professional fields, despite systemic racism.
Jones has so far declined to comment on the backlash.
The Indian community in New Zealand has strongly criticised Regional Development Minister Shane Jones after his remarks at New Zealand First’s annual meeting sparked outrage over the weekend.As reported by RNZ, speaking on Saturday ahead of an immigration announcement, Jones said the country’s...
The Indian community in New Zealand has strongly criticised Regional Development Minister Shane Jones after his remarks at New Zealand First’s annual meeting sparked outrage over the weekend.
As reported by RNZ, speaking on Saturday ahead of an immigration announcement, Jones said the country’s demography was “changing irreversibly” and pointed to common Indian surnames such as “Singh” and “Patel” as evidence of the shift. “If you want to change in a profound way the culture, the character, the make-up of your society, go and campaign on it,” he told reporters.
The comments have been met with anger from community leaders, who see them as part of a long-standing pattern of targeting minorities for political gain. Historian Harpreet Singh, whose family has lived in New Zealand for over 120 years, said such rhetoric was not new. “For over a century, attacking communities like Asian, Indian, Chinese and others has been the calling card for politicians. It’s a pattern used to deal with bad economy and bad policies,” he told RNZ’s First Up.
Singh explained that the prevalence of surnames such as Singh and Patel stems from cultural naming traditions and historic migration from Punjab and Gujarat.
He warned that remarks like Jones’ not only distort history but also hurt generations of Indian New Zealanders. “From a mental health perspective, you feel excluded, it affects kids at school, it affects job prospects, it affects hate in the workplace. You can’t keep using catcall racism to get votes,” he said, RNZ reported.
According to RNZ, third-generation Kiwi Ajit Singh Randhawa also defended the community’s legacy. “For more than a century, names like Singh and Patel have stood for hard work, sacrifice and nation-building in New Zealand,” he said. “Singh and Patel are not just surnames, they are signatures written into New Zealand’s story of grit, enterprise and belonging”, as quoted by RNZ.
From early farming contributions in Waikato to building small businesses and shaping professional sectors, Indian migrants and their descendants have played a pivotal role in New Zealand’s development.
A recent documentary, Punjab to Aotearoa, highlighted how the community grew from just six people recorded in the 1881 Census to New Zealand’s third-largest ethnic group in 2023.
According to RNZ, community curator Shanti Patel echoed these sentiments, noting the Indian community’s contributions since the 1960s in market gardening, retail, dairy, and later professional fields, despite systemic racism.
Jones has so far declined to comment on the backlash.
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