Wave of Islander migrants hits the heartland and shuns big cities

TA’UFO’OU Mataka hasn’t looked back since leaving her Auckland home four years ago for a new life in Timaru.

The mother of four moved to the South Island when her husband, Misimana Mataka, accepted a job as a fishing ship engineer, and is one of thousands of Pacific Islanders leaving Auckland for a fresh start in the South Island.

According to Statistics New Zealand, several thousand Pacific Islanders have left Auckland for greener pastures in towns such as Oamaru and Ashburton, the exodus being fuelled by increased employment opportunities and more affordable housing.

Ta’ufo’ou Mataka is part of what appears to be a third great wave of Pacific Islander migration into and across New Zealand.

Earlier waves in the 1970s and 1990s saw Pacific Islanders move into the inner-city Auckland suburb of Ponsonby, and then on to the city’s southern suburbs.

Mataka said she would never consider moving back to Auckland.

‘‘Timaru is big enough but not too big,’’ she said.

‘‘It’s quiet, it’s a good place to raise children. It’s easy to adapt to life here, there is a big Tongan community.’’

Ofa Boyle is the manager of the Fale Pasifika O Aoraki Trust, which assists Pacific Islanders in the South Island regions of MidCanterbury, South Canterbury, and North Otago by helping them connect with government organisations to access support services.

Boyle believes movement of Pacific Islanders to regional areas is a ‘‘big event’’ in New Zealand’s cultural history.

‘‘A merged Islander and traditional (European New Zealand) culture is emerging,’’ she said.

According to 2013 census figures, 3711 Pacific Islanders moved from Auckland to North Island regions between 2006 and