The 66 new police officers graduating from The Royal New Zealand Police College today come from a wide range of cultural backgrounds.
Along with a broad mix of Caucasian, Maori and Pacific Island New Zealanders, the wing includes recruits with Indian, Chinese, Korean, British, Portuguese, German and Dutch heritage.
"New Zealand Police is working hard to attract people from different ethnic groups so we can better reflect our community," says National Manager: Training and Professional Development Superintendent Alistair (Olly) Beckett.
All recruit wings have a patron, chosen for their leadership and inspirational qualities. Wing 222’s patron is Dr Nagalingam Rasalingam who is a GP in Glen Innes and well known for his work with refugee and ethnic communities.
The Wing 222 graduation will be held at The Royal New Zealand Police College in Porirua at 2:00pm on Thursday 31 March.
* 66 recruits will graduate – 49 males and 17 females
* The average age wing members is 29 (the youngest recruit is 21, the oldest 44)
Postings:
* Northland District - Kaikohe (1)
* Auckland City District – Avondale (2), Central (4), Downtown (2), Eastern (4)
* Counties Manukau District – Howick (2), Manurewa (3), Otahuhu (5), Pukukohe (1)
* North Shore Waitakere Rodney District – Henderson (4), Takapuna (4)
* Waikato District – Hamilton (1), Huntly (1), Morrinsville (1), Te Awamutu (2)
* Bay of Plenty District – Rotorua (1)
* Eastern District – Hastings (1)
* Central District – New Plymouth (1), Palmerston North (1), Wanganui (5)
* Wellington District – Lower Hutt (4), Upper Hutt (1), Masterton (1), Wellington (7); Wellington Traffic Alcohol Group (3)
* Tasman District – Greymouth (1), Nelson (1)
* Southern District – Invercargill (2)
Wing 222 prize winners:
Minister’s Prize for First in Wing was awarded to Constable Colin ROBSON posted to Rotorua.
Commissioner’s Prize for Second in Wing was awarded to Constable John CHRISTIE posted to Lower Hutt. Constable CHRISTIE was also awarded the Physical Training and Defensive Tactics Award.
Patron’s Prize for Third in Wing was awarded to Constable Mark CLIFFORD posted to Lower Hutt.
International Police Association Academic Prize (overall winner for academic exams) was awarded to Constable Katherine McBRIAR posted to Huntly.
Ericsson Practical Prize (overall winner for practical assessments, file preparation and fingerprinting) was awarded to Constable Brett CURRIE posted to Nelson.
The HOLDEN Tactical Skills and Safety Prize (overall winner in defensive tactics, firearms and driving) was awarded to Constable Nicholas LAWTON posted to Palmerston North. Constable LAWTON was also awarded the Driver Training Award.
The Meltzer Prize for Weapon Training was awarded to Constable Emmeline KOWALEWICZ posted to Henderson.
Police Association Prizes for Section Achievement:
This prize is awarded to an individual from each section who, in the collective view of the members of the section and the wing instructors, made the greatest contribution to the overall success of the team.
Section One, Constable Matthew BOURNE, posted to Takapuna.
Section Two, Constable Brenda GALE, posted to Upper Hutt.
Section Three, Constable Colin ROBSON, posted to Rotorua.
Wing Patron: Dr Nagalingam Rasalingam QSM, MNZM
Dr Nagalingam Rasalingam (also known as Dr Ras) has been a GP in Glen Innes, Auckland, since 1974. Since migrating to New Zealand from Sri Lanka in 1970 he has become well known for his work for refugees and ethnic communities and is an icon of the New Zealand Asian community.
Dr Ras is the President of the Refugee Council of New Zealand and has been President of the Auckland Ethnic Council and was a founding member of the New Zealand Tamil Society.
In June 2000 he received an MNZM for services to ethnic and refugee communities. He has also previously been awarded a QSM for community services.
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For more information or to attend graduation, please contact:
Toni Barlow
Communications Adviser
04 238 3413 / 0274 419 216