First Kiwi death attributed to Agent Orange

First Kiwi death attributed to Agent Orange 

Vietnam Veteran from New Zealands dies from American Chemical Exposure

By ROMY UDANGA – Manukau Courier

No New Zealand doctor had penned "Agent Orange exposure" as the cause of a Vietnam veteran’s death – until last week when Sergeant Rakai-Paka "Pat" Hauwai died of cancer.

On his death certificate his doctor attributed the 65-year-old’s death to Agent Orange, among other causes.  The Weymouth man died last Wednesday and was buried at Manukau Memorial Gardens on Monday with full military honours.  National Returned Services Association spokesman Stephen Clark says the RSA believes it’s the first time such a cause of death has been listed.

For decades Mr Hauwai, his wife Cavell and his family had been fighting the Agent Orange battle alongside his Vietnam veteran mates and the Returned Services Association. They wanted the government to recognise the health effects of the veterans’ exposure to the herbicide and defoliant while fighting with the New Zealand Army in Vietnam.

The veterans have argued that their service in what was a controversial and largely unpopular war should be recognised and acknowledged.

Patrick Thomas and Don Merito were among the veterans at Mr Hauwai’s funeral.

They were mates. All three were members of the 186-strong Victor Company of the 1st Battalion RNZIR, the first New Zealand infantry unit to serve in Vietnam in 1967.

Mr Thomas, a former 1 Platoon section second in command, recalls the indignity of their return from Vietnam in December 1967.

"When we landed at Whenuapai airport we were not allowed to wear our uniform. Instead we had to wear civilian clothes, and that was at 2am.

"Our mates who came back earlier were booed and had fruit thrown at them. Even the RSAs then refused to acknowledge us."

In May this year the government apologised to the Vietnam veterans for their treatment and acknowledged the suffering of men like Mr Hauwai and their families.

Many veterans suffered from leukaemia, soft tissue sarcoma and similar diseases. Their descendants suffer similar problems as well as spina bifida, cleft lip, cleft palate and adrenal gland cancer among others.

But Manurewa RSA Malaya and Vietnam branch president Theo Brunt says the government acknowledgement was too little and for Mr Hauwai too late.

"So many of our guys passed away, same symptoms as Pat’s but no doctor acknowledged their deaths’ connection to Agent Orange.

"The government now acknowledges it a little, but of late a lot of the guys have been getting sick," Mr Brunt says.

A grieving Mrs Hauwai says she wants her husband’s death to give "a huge push" to the veterans’ fight.

"Pat wore his uniform to fight for the ideals of our government but what has it done for him? It has not even bothered to look after him."

Mr Hauwai was so hurt by the government’s inattention he gave instructions to his wife not to pin on his medal bar when he was placed in his casket.

His army service had taken him to Malaya, Borneo, Vietnam and Rhodesia, among other places, and the Malaysian Service Medal and Vietnam Star were two of several medals on his bar.

"His mates noticed it too. But Pat talked to me about his funeral arrangements and told me he didn’t want his medals on because he would not have been in this state if it was not for Vietnam.

"I am relieved his doctor has the guts to put Agent Orange on his death certificate. It now gives us grunt to force the government to recognise its effects on these veterans and their families,” she says.

Mrs Hauwai’s words at her husband’s funeral were met with respectable silence as the teary-eyed veterans tried to hold back tears.

Each of them knows that between 1961 and 1971 an estimated 80,000 cubic metres of Agent Orange was sprayed liberally on the thick forest covers of Vietnam.

They know too that most of the 4000 New Zealand military personnel who were part of the 1964-1972 New Zealand campaign in Vietnam were exposed to the powerful herbicide whose dioxin component increased their risk to various types of cancer and genetic defects.

In the back of their minds they also know many of them will not reach old age and Mr Hauwai’s passing is a reminder to them all.

Mr Merito says the soldiers in Vietnam did not know “we were drinking water contaminated by that silent killer. We had it in our clothes, our noses, our mouths, inside our bodies.

“We did not mind going to war and dying in the hands of the enemy but to slowly die from this silent killer has had a devastating impact on our lives.

“Not only does it impact those who are living but it’s inter-generational. It has devastating effects on our family ties – break-up of marriages, alcoholism, loneliness, sense of hopelessness.

“Over the years many of our mates have died without really knowing the truth about Agent Orange.

“The medical profession got used to the government’s statement of denial and doctors hid behind a veil of bureaucracy to deny our mates and their loved ones the truth about the cause of their death.

“Now we can go further,” Mr Merito says.

Mrs Hauwai also wants to go further. Apart from the package of measures the government provided to settle the veterans’ grievances in 2006, she wants a structured health programme “to look after the boys”.

“It has to be a proper medical programme that the veterans, their children and grandchildren have to frequently go through.

“It should be run by doctors – not ordinary practitioners who won’t listen to our boys – who are familiar with the effects of Agent Orange so they know what to look out for when they check our boys and their families.

“With that in place maybe we’d be able to save a few,” she says.

Mr Hauwai served in the army for 20 years, starting as a private in June 1965 and retiring as a sergeant in June 1985. His tour of duty in Rhodesia in 1979 with 74 New Zealand soldiers was part of a 1200-strong Commonwealth ceasefire monitoring group.

After leaving the army he worked for Downer EDI Works until August 12 this year. He is survived by his wife, children Tui and Moana and stepchildren Denice, Debbie and Chris. His mates describe him as a kind, loving and passionate man.

“He was a natural leader and people followed him. We have lots of respect for him,” Mr Thomas says.

“And he had this aura around him that attracted people to him. We know his death will not be in vain,” Mr Merito says.