Navigating 100 years of foreign policy
Every day for more than 100 years, diplomats and specialist staff have worked to advance New Zealand’s interests around theworld.
Whether working on aid, trade or foreign policy, their work has helped to chart the country’s course through ever-changing global waters.
In the course of this work our foreign affairs officials have created thousands of pieces of information. From policy analysis, photographs and accounts of historic events, they are a hugely valuable source for our understanding of New Zealand’s history.
Archives New Zealand Te Rua Mahara o te Kāwanatanga holds many of these physical records and for the first time, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade Te Manatū Aorere has launched a guide to help researchers navigate the archive records.
The records come in all shapes and sizes, and give an insight into the behind-thescenes thinking, discussions and debates that have contributed to official positions across decades.
Valedictories, for example, were the name given to a head of post’s final despatch and addressed to the foreign affairs minister. They summarise the bilateral relationship, include some irreverent or humorous parts, and are very thoughtfully written.
The guide will help researchers to navigate many quirks of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade’s information.
A good example of this is the difference between telegrams written on blue, pink and yellow paper.
Blue and pink mean the communication is sent from Wellington; yellow means it is sent to Wellington.
The idea of the guide came about from author and veteran diplomat Jim Howell, who has been with the ministry since 1962.
Howell has represented New Zealand in Saudi Arabia, United States, Malaysia, Peru and many other countries. He has extensive foreign policy experience and has led important ministry-wide changes from Wellington.
Howell’s knowledge of how the ministry has worked and recorded information for more than 60 years is a taonga.
He notes that until the year 2010, the bulk of the ministry’s information was recorded on paper and had a range of physical filing structures.
This is a novelty to an increasing number of people who have come of age in our digital world. During the first Covid-19 lockdown, Howell set out to record what he knows, so future generations can more easily navigate the ministry’s historical records and research our diplomatic history.
The guide includes an introduction to the ministry’s records, how to find and use them and a glossary to decode the descriptions of different types – from diplomatic bags to confidential airmail bulletins and aid programme files.
It is designed to support use of the collections held at Archives New Zealand. Researchers can use the archives’ Collections database to locate files and seek the support of archivists to engage with the historical collection.
The ministry hopes the guide will help unlock its historical records and inform a deeper understanding of Aotearoa New Zealand’s place in the world.