Sonja Davies Peace Award
The Sonja Davies Peace Award promotes initiatives that advance peace in New Zealand. The award is available to a woman or group led by a woman who are developing an initiative that will help them create a more peaceful world at home, school, the workplace, or in the community.
In 2015, our panel awarded the Sonja Davies Peace Award to Maureen Fepuleai-Harvey for her play entitled ‘E Ono Tama’i Pato’ a powerful production that gives voice to women as survivors of abuse.
Tribute
The Sonja Davies Peace Award was established as a tribute to the life and work of Sonja Davies, to acknowledge her contribution to the advancement of women and her commitment to peace. The Trust gratefully acknowledges the generous sponsorship of individuals and organisations who made the Sonja Davies Peace Award possible. Donations to this fund are welcome.
 with Dr Jo Innes (NHWT Chair) (1).JPG)
Maureen Fepuleai-Harvey (right) receiving the 2015 Sonja Davies Peace Award from NHWT Chair Dr Jo Innes
Maureen writes - We are a group of Pasifika women who would like to travel to Wellington and Hamilton to present a play reading of my script, 'e ono tama'i pato'. This script is about sexual abuse in our community and how a group of mothers deal or don't deal with it, the impact it has on their loved ones and the evolving realisation by the women that if they don't do something to stop the cycle, nobody will. We had a very successful reading in Auckland in 2013 and we paid for it out of our own pockets and the money that we raised that evening was donated in full to the Samoan Victim Support Group back home in Samoa. This was held at the Mangere Performing Arts Centre and over 200 people attended. Our dream is to raise enough funds to take this play reading to Samoa one day, but first, we need to share this message to more of our communities here in New Zealand.