Part One

Clearing ‘the Mists of Ignorance’: the New Zealand China Friendship Society in the 1970s

by Germaine Han*

In a series of letters written in July 1975, Wilfred ‘Bill’ McAra applied for membership to the New Zealand China Friendship Society (NZCFS), formally known as the New Zealand China Friendship Society. ‘Dear Jack,’ he wrote in one letter, ‘Enclosed $4 to cover membership for Diana Wilsie and myself’. McAra and Wilsie, once-active members of the Communist Party of New Zealand (CPNZ), were passionate about Marxist-Leninist ideology and found common ground with the NZCFS. Along with the membership forms, McAra wrote, ‘I had intended earlier to commend the Society and its members, for its outstanding contribution in the struggle to secure Governmental recognition of the People’s Republic of China.’ As the National Secretary of the NZCFS at the time, Jack Ewen was perfectly happy to admit McAra and his partner into the group.

A NZCFS subscription form McAra would have likely filled out. (Joan Donley Papers, MSS & Archives-2007/15, Series 4. File 4/4/B/1 part 1, Special Collections, Te Tumu Herenga | Libraries and Learning Services, University of Auckland.)

First founded in 1952, the NZCFS was an organization that sought to understand and befriend the People’s Republic of China (PRC). Throughout its existence, it underwent several name changes. It first begun as The China Friendship Association, then became the New Zealand China Society after its inauguration in 1958. It wasn’t until the 25th anniversary of the Auckland branch—and the society as a whole—when it was finally changed to its current iteration of the New Zealand China Friendship Society (Inc.).

The history of the New Zealand China Friendship Society, including its Auckland branch, is not as simple as it seems at first glance. Beginning as a group that highly idealized the PRC, it would later come face to face with the Chinese government’s propaganda and be forced to reconsider its own raison d’etre. Because of the society’s starting point as a group of primarily left-wing-leaning Pākehā, its history enriches our understanding of academics and intellectuals in Auckland. As such, the Auckland branch’s history presents a picture of great ambitions being challenged, shattered, and transformed through time. Not only does the history of the branch display Auckland’s changing relationship with China, it also provides a perspective on New Zealanders’ interactions with the Chinese community in Auckland.

This series of three articles will look into the NZCFS Auckland branch between the 1970s to the early twenty-first century. It will examine the various ways the branch interacted with the Auckland community, its changing relationship with China over the latter part of the twentieth century, and how its definition of ‘friendship’ would slowly be rewritten. This first article will cover the founding of the society, then delve into the Auckland branch’s activities in the 1970s—specifically regarding the way the branch attempted to spread knowledge about China.

To start with, the NZCFS story begins in central Auckland. Although the society would later expand to a national group, its roots were in Tāmaki Makaurau Auckland and many of their early activities would be managed by the Auckland branch. The China Friendship Association (later NZCFS) had its very first meeting on 27 February, 1952, which took place at the Tabernacle Buildings on Karangahape Road. Seventeen people were present at this meeting, and the group opened membership to ‘all who desired friendship with China’. The society was non party-political at the time, but aimed to convince the New Zealand government to officially recognize the PRC, just as the British government had already done in 1950. Since governmental recognition was a goal that continued to resonate with McAra twenty years later, it is clear that it held huge significance to the society.

A promotional leaflet from the NZCFS, found in McAra’s papers, clarified the society’s other aims. The NZCFS sought to ‘develop mutual knowledge and friendship between New Zealanders and Chinese’ and ‘clear the mists of ignorance and provide accurate information’, thus promoting ‘mutual understanding and mutual respect’ between the two peoples. It also hoped to ‘promote mutual trade between New Zealand and the People’s Republic of China’, and ‘extend continually cultural and sporting relations’ between New Zealanders and Chinese. In smaller print, the leaflet noted there were ‘aspects of Chinese education, thought and… practical arts of living, which we can all study with mutual benefit’. To the society, the PRC was a place and culture full of valuable insights. The society saw itself as responsible for wiping away misinformation about China and replacing any falsehoods with accurate knowledge of Chinese culture and ideology.

The NZCFS (then the NZCS) was strongly Communist-leaning. Many members of the society were members of the CPNZ, which was notable for breaking away from the Soviet Union in the 1960s and choosing instead to align with the PRC. In a time when many Chinese New Zealanders were wary of Chinese Communists, most of the NZCFS’s members were Europeans and many were openly supportive of Communist ideologies. 

But there were exceptions. Nancy Goddard (née Kwok), was a Chinese New Zealander who worked as an executive member for the society’s Wellington Branch in the 1970s. She was married to George Goddard, a well-known member of the CPNZ. Around twenty years later, she would become the National Secretary for the NZCFS. Jim Wong was also a notable member of the society’s National Executive. He was elected as National Secretary in 1977 at the NZCFS’s National Conference in Auckland, and presumably held the role until his death in 1984.

The 1970s was a busy time for the society. The Auckland branch was particularly involved in trying to make Chinese culture accessible to the New Zealand public. It did so through various means, including hosting discussion groups, seminars, and film showings. It also worked closely with Progressive Books, a bookstore in Auckland that stocked left-wing-leaning and academic books. With these activities, its members hoped to achieve their aim of providing accurate information about China and share ideals and insights they believed in.

Book advertisement found in the June 1975 paper of the New Zealand-China News. (Wilfred (Bill) McAra papers, MSS & Archives-94/4, Series 2, File 21, Special Collections, Te Tumu Herenga | Libraries and Learning Services, University of Auckland.)

In the 1970s, the Auckland Branch headquarters were located in the Society Rooms on 20-22 Swanson Street. Open from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. five days a week, both society members and people from the public were encouraged to visit. Photographic exhibitions, books, and magazines from China were made available to those who were curious to learn more.

The Auckland branch also held discussion groups for people who wanted to study China more closely. In 1977, discussion topics included ‘China, the Quality of Life’—based on a book by Wilfred Burchett and Rewi Alley—‘the Geography of China’, and lessons in basic Mandarin.

Alongside the study groups, the NZCFS’s film showings were both a way to spread knowledge about China and to earn funds to keep the society running. The films generally consisted of videos relating to Chinese culture and Communist ideology. In the Auckland Branch report from the society’s 1975 biennial national conference, chair Ron Fairley mentioned that films such as Red Flag Canal were shown in city theatres. Felix Greene’s documentaries on China were also quite popular as they tended to draw in larger audiences. For a more personal take on events in China, the Auckland Branch even hosted a special evening to show movies that society members had filmed during their visits to China. It was these visits that gave more credibility to the society’s knowledge about China. According to the branch report, this film showing was also well-attended, although it was not mentioned who the audience members were comprised of.

Additionally, the NZFCS often held seminars on the way China handled national issues. In October 1975, a seminar about women in China was held to commemorate International Women’s Year. In July 1976, an all-day seminar was held on China’s national minorities. The following year, another seminar was held at the Trades Hall in Grey Lynn on energy and conservation in China.

Programme cover for the Energy & Conservation Seminar in 1977. (Joan Donley Papers, MSS & Archives-2007/15, Series 4. File 4/4/B/1 part 3, Special Collections, Te Tumu Herenga | Libraries and Learning Services, University of Auckland.)

One notable seminar, simply entitled Seminar on China, was held at the Auckland University campus on the weekend of March 30-31, 1974. Although it was originally scheduled earlier in October 1973, the date had to be moved forward to accommodate the school holidays. When public interest in the seminar seemed higher than expected, the venue was shifted from the Women’s Common Room to the Table Tennis Room in the Student Union Building, which was able to hold more people and could be locked up at night. The Auckland University Students’ Association had provided the NZCFS with access to the venue for free, a gesture that the seminar committee was deeply grateful for. The NZCFS remained on good terms with the students’ association. In the following years, they would continue to hold several other seminars at the Student Union Building.

The Seminar on China began at 9:00 a.m. on Saturday morning and went on until 9 p.m., although guests were free to attend their preferred sessions at their own leisure. While guests were encouraged to bring their own lunches, morning and afternoon teas were included to break up the seminar talks. Sunday’s programme was understandably shorter. The seminar continued at 8:45 a.m. and finished at 4:45 p.m., although there was an optional film showing at 7:30 p.m. on Darby Street.

Eighteen speakers were invited to present at the seminar. Most were members of the society and had visited, taught, or lived in China. The sessions were varied, encompassing large areas of interest in modern China. Topics ranged from trade and foreign policy, to literature and music, to education and medicine, to the lives of women and children.

In her official seminar report, NZCFS executive member Joan Donley described the sessions as ‘satisfactorily attended’. Although the number of attendees at each session depended on the topic in question, she noted that the session on medicine was especially popular. This was because it covered the subject of acupuncture, a practice that was controversial in New Zealand at the time. The person who spoke at the session was William Wong Doo, an acupuncturist working in Auckland. After he promoted the seminar to his patients, many of them registered as guests and attended to hear him speak.

Joan Donley (right). Date unknown, likely around 1978. Photograph by unknown. (Joan Donley Papers, MSS & Archives-2007/15, Series 4. File 4/4/B/1 part 2, Special Collections, Te Tumu Herenga | Libraries and Learning Services, University of Auckland.)

Yet, the seminar committee found the audience members to be lacking in some ways. With disappointment, Donley noted that many society members were absent from the seminar. Additionally, although the society had reached out to members of the Chinese community, students from secondary schools, and university students, few actually showed up to any of the sessions. In Donley’s report, fellow committee member Paul Wangford questioned if this was because none of the sessions in the seminar had been aimed at the underrepresented groups.

The Seminar on China is perhaps a microcosm of the NZCFS in the 1970s. Although their activities showed there was plenty of goodwill and interest towards China, the society was rather separate from the Chinese community in New Zealand. The next article will see several ways the NZCFS dedicated itself to unity with the PRC, and how its idealized vision of China would be ripped away without warning. Although the NZCFS began as a group seeking something as simple as ‘friendship’, its members still had a long road ahead of them.