Ben Couch
Minister of Māori Affairs | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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In office 13 December 1978 – 26 July 1984 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Prime Minister | Robert Muldoon | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Preceded by | Duncan MacIntyre | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Succeeded by | Koro Wētere | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Member of the New Zealand Parliament for Wairarapa | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
In office 1975–1984 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Preceded by | Jack Williams | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Succeeded by | Reg Boorman | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Personal details | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Born | Manuera Benjamin Rīwai Couch 27 June 1925 Lyttelton, New Zealand | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Died | 3 June 1996 Masterton, New Zealand | (aged 70)||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Political party | National | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Spouse | Bessie Couch | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Children | 7 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Height | 1.73 m (5 ft 8 in) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Weight | 81 kg (179 lb) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
School | Christchurch Technical College | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Rugby union career | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Manuera Benjamin Rīwai Couch
Early life
Couch was born in 1925 in Lyttelton.[1] He was raised by his maternal grandmother in Christchurch until the age of eight, when he was sent to live with his maternal uncle near Pirinoa in rural Wairarapa.[1] He was educated at Ōtaki Māori College, and then, from 1940 to 1942, Christchurch Technical College.[1] After a carpentry apprenticeship in Christchurch, Couch joined the Royal New Zealand Air Force in August 1943, and later transferred to the army.[1]
In 1945, Couch returned to Pirinoa to work as a builder, and in 1947 he married Bessie Carter, his childhood sweetheart.[1] Carter was a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and Couch converted to that faith in 1949.[1]
Rugby union
A
Political career
Years | Term | Electorate | Party | ||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1975–1978 | 38th | Wairarapa | National | ||
1978–1981 | 39th | Wairarapa | National | ||
1981–1984 | 40th | Wairarapa | National |
In the 1975 general election, he was elected to Parliament as the National Party member of parliament for the Wairarapa electorate,[3] thus becoming (with Rex Austin) only the second and third Māori (after Sir James Carroll) to win a general electorate (as opposed to a Māori electorate).[4]
He served as
He created some controversy by wearing a
In June 1981, he was asked "So you support apartheid in South Africa?" to which he responded "Yes. Over there I've got to".[5]
In 1977, Couch was awarded the Queen Elizabeth II Silver Jubilee Medal, and in 1990 he received the New Zealand 1990 Commemoration Medal.[6] In the 1991 Queen's Birthday Honours, Couch was appointed a Companion of the Queen's Service Order for public services.[7]
Later life and death
In the 1990s, Couch was involved in various Māori organisations. He died in 1996 in Masterton.[2]
References
- ^ a b c d e f g Snow, S.G. "Couch, Manuera Benjamin Rīwai". Dictionary of New Zealand Biography. Ministry for Culture and Heritage. Retrieved 21 November 2013.
- ^ a b c Knight, Lindsay. "Ben Couch". New Zealand Rugby Museum. Retrieved 21 November 2013.
- ^ OCLC 154283103.
- ^ "Ngā māngai – Māori representation". Te Ara – the Encyclopedia of New Zealand. Ministry for Culture and Heritage. 13 July 2013. Retrieved 21 November 2013.
- ^ Looking Back – Episode 11 (timestamp 41:54), retrieved 11 April 2022
- ISBN 0-908578-34-2.
- ^ "No. 52564". The London Gazette (2nd supplement). 15 June 1991. p. 31.