Phillip Albert Amos was a New Zealand

New Zealand

New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...

 politician of the Labour Party

New Zealand Labour Party

The New Zealand Labour Party is a New Zealand political party. It describes itself as centre-left and socially progressive and has been one of the two primary parties of New Zealand politics since 1935....

. He was the Member of Parliament for Manurewa

Manurewa (New Zealand electorate)

Manurewa is a New Zealand Parliamentary electorate.It is currently held by George Hawkins MP.-Population Centres:The electorate includes the following population centres:...

 from 1963

New Zealand general election, 1963

The 1963 New Zealand general election was a nationwide vote to determine the shape of the New Zealand Parliament's 34th term. The results were almost identical to those for the previous election, and the governing National Party remained in office....

 to 1975

New Zealand general election, 1975

The 1975 New Zealand general election was held to elect MPs to the 38th session of the New Zealand Parliament. It was the first election in New Zealand where 18-20 year olds and all permanent residents of New Zealand were eligible to vote, although only citizens were able to be...

, when he was defeated.

He was the Minister of Education

Minister of Education (New Zealand)

The Minister of Education is a minister in the government of New Zealand with responsibility for the country's schools, and is in charge of the Ministry of Education.The present Minister is Anne Tolley, a member of the National Party.-History:...

 in the Third Labour Government

Third Labour Government of New Zealand

The Third Labour Government of New Zealand was the government of New Zealand from 1972 to 1975. During its time in office, it carried out a wide range of reforms in areas such as overseas trade, farming, public works, energy generation, local government, health, the arts, sport and recreation,...

 from 1972 to 1975, and Minister of Island Affairs from 1972 to 1974.

In 1976 while protesting the visit of US cruiser Long Beach in his small yacht the Dolphin he was convicted of obstruction, but won on appeal with the help of then lawyer David Lange

David Lange

David Russell Lange, ONZ, CH , served as the 32nd Prime Minister of New Zealand from 1984 to 1989. He headed New Zealand's fourth Labour Government, one of the most reforming administrations in his country's history, but one which did not always conform to traditional expectations of a...

.

He was born in Wanganui

Wanganui

Whanganui , also spelled Wanganui, is an urban area and district on the west coast of the North Island of New Zealand. It is part of the Manawatu-Wanganui region....

, and was an RNZAF

Royal New Zealand Air Force

The Royal New Zealand Air Force is the air arm of the New Zealand Defence Force...

 pilot in the Pacific in WWII

World War II

World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...

. As Education Minister

Minister of Education (New Zealand)

The Minister of Education is a minister in the government of New Zealand with responsibility for the country's schools, and is in charge of the Ministry of Education.The present Minister is Anne Tolley, a member of the National Party.-History:...

 (from 1972–75), he drove the integration of Catholic schools, and the reduction of class sizes. Amos was a former teacher

Teacher

A teacher or schoolteacher is a person who provides education for pupils and students . The role of teacher is often formal and ongoing, carried out at a school or other place of formal education. In many countries, a person who wishes to become a teacher must first obtain specified professional...

.

As a friend of the Tanzanian President Nyerere

Julius Nyerere

Julius Kambarage Nyerere was a Tanzanian politician who served as the first President of Tanzania and previously Tanganyika, from the country's founding in 1961 until his retirement in 1985....

, he lived in a remote part of Tanzania

Tanzania

The United Republic of Tanzania is a country in East Africa bordered by Kenya and Uganda to the north, Rwanda, Burundi, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo to the west, and Zambia, Malawi, and Mozambique to the south. The country's eastern borders lie on the Indian Ocean.Tanzania is a state...

 from 1976 to 1988. Disillusioned with Rogernomics

Rogernomics

The term Rogernomics, a portmanteau of "Roger" and "economics", was coined by journalists at the New Zealand Listener by analogy with Reaganomics to describe the economic policies followed by Roger Douglas after his appointment in 1984 as Minister of Finance in the Fourth Labour Government...

, he joined and was president of the NewLabour

NewLabour Party (New Zealand)

NewLabour was a left-of-centre party founded in 1989 by Jim Anderton, an MP and former President of the New Zealand Labour Party.NewLabour was established by a number of Labour Party members who left the party in reaction to "Rogernomics", the economic policies implemented by the Labour Party's...

 Party. after his return to Auckland. He was a Swahili interpreter/translator.

He married (1) Jill Turner and (2) Odilia. He died in Auckland

Auckland

The Auckland metropolitan area , in the North Island of New Zealand, is the largest and most populous urban area in the country with residents, percent of the country's population. Auckland also has the largest Polynesian population of any city in the world...

.

Further reading

• This interview was conducted by Neville Glasgow. This interview is cassette # 69 in this series.

• This interview was conducted by Richard Thompson.