Our Stories, Our Voices, Our Identities

The New Zealand Resettlement Storybook is an introductory narrative to encourage relationship building between resettled people and New Zealand society. The stories in this book recall the lived experiences of individuals from a forced migrant background, i.e., those who were forced, because of civil war and persecution, to leave their country of origin without having the choice to immigrate. These narratives are human stories of hope and resilience that give different voices and space to tell their life stories beyond settlement. This is a sequel to the book "Beyond Refuge: Stories of Resettlement in Auckland", published in 2016 and second print in 2021. This book has been compiled by the author for the Aotearoa Resettled Community Coalition (ARCC) as a part of his strategic leadership role to engage and connect with wider stakeholders, including service providers, policymakers, the media, and educational institutions, politicians, and the public. The book serves as a guide, resource, and tool to equip the audiences with resettlement knowledge. These narratives bring a greater understanding of the journeys toward smooth settlement and positive integration at local, regional, and national levels. The book captures ethnic diverse background voices that foster sustainability and help maintain the storyteller's own cultural identities. The storybook shares these human struggle and success stories with love and compassion to all Aotearoa, New Zealand (resettled people and host society) and the world. It recognizes the Aotearoa New Zealand hospitality and the opportunity that allows time to become a healer for some of the individual storytellers as they recover from the past and discover their new home dreams. The spirit of willingness to tell a story and share personal confidences opens a larger audience to hear directly from people who have lived through traumatic experiences. The book aims to change people's mindsets and worldviews through storytelling. And it will take you along the journey of 20 individuals' new residents and citizens of New Zealand. They openly share their resettlement journeys, from leaving a country of origin, a country of asylum, and finally starting a new life in Aotearoa, New Zealand. The personal accounts will improve readers' general knowledge and understanding of the resettlement journey. It creates an awareness that can lead to more positive settlement and integration outcomes for resettled people. New residents/Resettled people are not asking for a special privilege; they want to be treated like any other New Zealander and to be respected as human beings. The storybook publishing is an aim to create self-reconciliation via active participation for new residents/resettled migrants of Aotearoa, New Zealand, opening cultural and economic contribution to their new home. It is also to fill the public and service providers knowledge gap to support the healing process by building confidence to adapt to new home culture and enlightenment of recovery and resilience from historical trauma. The storybook offers to listen to participants collective voices and respect their priorities with recognition of individual opinions that laminate the mission of guilt and ongoing trauma.