Noisy pro-Rangatira rally greets Lyttelton M.P.
About 35 placardwaving demonstrators noisily greeted the member of Parliament for Lyttelton (Miss Colleen Dewe) when she visited the Lyttelton Borough Council fast evening.
The demonstrators, almost all Lyttelton residents, had gathered outside the council chambers to protest against the withdrawal of the Rangatira and the lack of progress on the Lyttelton health centre.
Equipped with placards and banners they maintained an hour-long vigil outside the chambers in near-freezing temperatures before Miss Dewe arrived at 9.30 p.m. Miss Dewe was cornered on the pavement for about 10 miuntes, parrying questions from the demonstrators, before being allowed
to enter the chambers for an informal meeting with the council. The organisers .of the demonstration (Mrs J. Dale and Mrs R. Cox) said they had been spurred into action by Miss Dewe’s comments on television that Lyttelton residents did not appear overly concerned about the loss of the Rangatira, judging by the number of letters she had received. "We get a pretty raw deal over here,” said Mrs Cox. Miss Dewe told last night’s demonstrators that she still did not think there could be much public feeling in the borough if the numbers who had turned out to meet her were any indication. However, Miss Dewe said she had never been against the Rangatira service — just the Rangatira. Canterbury groups making a last-ditch effort to
keep the Rangatira will appear before Parliament’s Petitions Committee on July 28. The deadline for written submissions is July 23. Yesterday, the chairman of the Canterbury Progress League (Mr D. S. McKenzie) said that several organisations protesting against the withdrawal had already been lined up to make personal representations to the committee.
They included the Christchurch City Council, Canterbury Chamber of Commerce, Lyttelton Waterside Workers’ Union, Lyttelton Borough Council, Lyttelton Road Tunnel Authority, and the South Island Local Bodies Association.
The Canterbury Trades Council, Canterbury Manufacturers’ Association, and South Island Promotion Association were also being approached.
“I would also like to see direct representation from some women’s organisations,” Mr McKenzie said.
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Press, 13 July 1976, Page 1
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339Noisy pro-Rangatira rally greets Lyttelton M.P. Press, 13 July 1976, Page 1
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