49th Meeting of the International Committee of Legal Metrology

摘要

Good morning, good morning; I want to say good morning in Maori. Ladies and gentlemen, can I ask you to be upstanding as we call on our representatives. [Maori song and words in Maori] I am pleased to open the Conference. We are not an old country, we are going to celebrate a hundred and seventy five years of the establishment of Auckland, so that is not long ago, when I see the nationalities that are here. Next year, Auckland will celebrate its founding a hundred and seventy five years ago. For us, Tamatufinua, the people who were here first, we have been here a thousand years, as long as a lot of you in your own country. But anyway, I just want to say, our National Anthem was initially a hymn, so when you hear "all the gods" in our national anthem, well, that's what it is. I am just going to read it, because there are five verses and we only sang the first verse. I want to read the second verse, because it includes all of us. And this is our prayer, as we stand: Men of every created race, Gathered here before thy face, Asking thee to bless this place, God defend our free land, From dissension and hate And corruption, guard our state. Make our country good and great: God defend New Zealand.