As part of the GOCMV’s Greek History and Culture Seminar series, Dr Martyn Brown will give an insightful presentation on the ‘Politics of Forgetting – the New Zealand/Greek Relationship: 1941-1945’.
Historical accounts from this period, along with public commemoration in New Zealand, cultivate the notion of a ‘special relationship’ between the Pacific and Mediterranean nations.
Dominating memories are also stories of shared sacrifice and resisting the German invader in early 1941, along with aid given by civilians to New Zealand soldiers escaping or evading capture.
But of course, there’s always more to the story.
In his seminar, lecturer and research fellow Dr Brown will look at why the reality of this period was much more complex and filled with contentious politics; at its worst, Greeks and New Zealanders even killed one another.
By bringing these realities to the surface and examining the ‘hidden’ history, he will shed light on New Zealand and controversies involving both the Greeks and Britain.
How did New Zealand’s government and military leadership navigate a path through the quagmire of Greek-related politics? The situation became publicly acute when sections of New Zealand society began taking sides in Greek-related politics.
Dr Brown has been researching the Greek-New Zealand wartime connection for 12 years and includes interviews and archives research in New Zealand, Australia, England, Greece, Germany and the United States. He is an Honorary Research Fellow with the School of Historical and Philosophical Inquiry at the University of Queensland, and a lecturer in Information Systems at the University of Southern Queensland.
The seminar will take place on Thursday 21 April at 7.00 pm at the Greek Centre (mezzanine, 168 Lonsdale St, Melbourne, VIC). Attendance is free of charge. For more information, visit www.greekcommunity.com.au/seminars or call (03) 9662 2722.