A Holiday For Hillary?
15 January 2008
Sir Edmund Hillary died last week. Hillary become the first mountaineer to reach the top of Mount Everest. He also spent much of his life helping the Sherpa people of Nepal. The trust that he founded has built schools and hospitals throughout a remote area of the Himalayas.
There are now calls for an annual public holiday to be held in New Zealand. Some people are suggesting that this take place on 20 July, which was his birthday. There are currently no public holidays between late June and late October, so the promoters of this idea state that a holiday on 20 July would help break up this rather long period.
I am against the idea of a public holiday to commemorate Hillary and his achievements. Yes, he had a lot of personal achievements, and has helped the Sherpa people. But what major impact has he had on New Zealanders' lives? There are many other New Zealanders who have had a greater impact on the New Zealand society and who would deserve a holiday named after them even more than Sir Edmund. Sir Ernest Rutherford is one that springs to mind straight away.
I do have admiration for Sir Edmund Hillary. However, a public holiday is not an appropriate way for us to show our collective affection.