Speech

tena koutou katoa     ko Evan toku ingoua  

I am a Kiwi and I love the water surfing, swimming, fishing, snorkelling I am sure you get the picture. New Zealand is an island nation with some of the most amazing  waterways in the world. Our oceans, coasts, beaches, lakes and rivers help define us and reflect the people we have become. Water is  our way of life in New Zealand but it also takes life and as humans we naturally  live on land not water.

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Making Swimming lessons compulsory for all primary school children will fight the fact that  more people drown in rivers than in any other New Zealand waterway. Swimming lessons that teach swimming and water sense  will teach Kiwis about rivers and how dangerous they can be depending on the weather, terrain, and forces of flowing water in the river these are the main hazards  in and near rivers. Swimming lessons that let Kiwi’s know that rivers generally are not patrolled and do not have warning signs.

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Swimming lessons will be a great way to teach Kiwis’s that Rivers present a completely different range of potential dangers compared to the ocean and swimming pools. The pressure of moving water is constant and can be powerful even if the river looks slow moving and calm.

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So far this year there have been 43 preventable drownings. 2016 sadly saw 78 people drown. Preventable - just what does that even mean you may ask ? Well according to water safety New Zealand these numbers would be lower if we had a patrol at rivers ,lakes and waterways. But I believe that teaching swimming and water sense would help prevent this.

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I think that people should get swimming lessons when they  are below the age of 5-8 why you may ask well actually the amount of drowning in 2016 30 % percent were children under the age  of 12  15 deaths 9 of them as young as 4 and as old as old as 8 this is not cool.

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Some of you may be wondering Money what about money well  money is A huge factor in this topic because of the fact the some new zealanders don't get swim lessons because of reasons like their wealth . I reckon it should be free and the government should pay the swim coaches just like teacher the tax your parents pay would be payed to swim coaches

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all Kiwis and visitors should  have a safe experience in on or around the waterways of Aotearoa, New Zealand. With a respect for the water and an awareness of the the possible dangers to themselves and others knowing how to prevent injury and death to enjoy their water experiences around new zealand