29 MARCH 2005

Beehive: New Zealand delegation to attend Pacific campaign commemorations

Prime Minister Helen Clark announced today that an official delegation will travel with the RNZAF to attend events in the Solomons and New Caledonia marking the sixtieth anniversary of VJ Day and the end of hostilities in the Pacific.

Helen Clark said a veterans’ party of up to eighty will be included in the official delegation, which will travel on an RNZAF Boeing 757 aircraft.

“The sixtieth anniversary is a significant commemoration for New Zealand and it is important that we support veterans of the Pacific Campaign who want to travel to the region to remember the sacrifices that were made,” Helen Clark said.

Helen Clark said Veterans’ Affairs New Zealand will conduct a ballot to select the veterans who will travel to the Solomons and New Caledonia.

A New Zealand Defence Force honour guard and Maori cultural group will be part of the delegation.

The visit is scheduled to take place from 12 to 16 August. The sixtieth anniversary of VJ Day will be marked on 15 August.

Original Press Release

NZ delegation to attend Pacific campaign commemorations