Vietnam War Oral History Project
The Ministry for Culture and Heritage is leading the first ever large-scale project recording the stories of New Zealand's Vietnam War veterans and their families. The project came about as a result of the Joint Working Group of veteran and government representatives which was established in 2005 to address the concerns of Vietnam veterans.
Paul Diamond is managing the four-year project and together with Jean Sergent-Shadbolt, will work with interviewers around the country to record oral history interviews with veterans and their families. The project also has a digital history (website) component so that people involved in the war can contribute their memories and memorabilia to a digital history archive. The website (VietnamWar.govt.nz) allows a wide variety of people to contribute to the project and also provides educational and other historical resources on New Zealand's involvement in Vietnam.
The Vietnam War Oral History Project will build on previous war oral history work completed by the Ministry. It also complements the official history of the Vietnam War, being written by Ministry historian and General Editor-War History, Ian McGibbon, together with Roberto Rabel's 2005 book, New Zealand and the Vietnam War, which surveys the diplomatic, political, and social dimensions of New Zealand's involvement in the conflict.
The Vietnam War Oral History project can be contacted at: info@vietnamwar.govt.nz
Vietnam Remembered: Wellington June 1998
Bruce Foster/Ministry of Defence
