By RNZ Pacific
The New Zealand Consul-General to the French Pacific, Bruce Shepherd, has died.
According to Les Nouvelles Calédoniennes website, Shepherd died of a heart attack yesterday.
Based in Noumea since his appointment in 2017, Shepherd had been responsible for New Zealand’s links with New Caledonia, French Polynesia and Wallis and Futuna.
Shepherd, who was of Ngāti Kahu-o-Torongare descent, was earlier New Zealand’s Ambassador to Ethiopia and the African Union, and had also been posted to Myanmar, the United Arab Emirates and Tonga.
Shepherd also worked in Geneva with the United Nations.
New Zealand’s Foreign Affairs Minister, Winston Peters, today commended the life and work of Shepherd.
“Mr Shepherd, whose diplomatic career took him to virtually every corner of the world promoting New Zealand’s interests, will be deeply missed by colleagues here and abroad,” Peters said in a statement.
“The government offers its condolences to his wife Christine, his son Alexandre, his parents Richard and Pamela, and his wider family, who have had Mr Shepherd taken from them far too soon.”
Shepherd, who was of Ngāti Kahu-o-Torongare descent, was earlier New Zealand’s Ambassador to Ethiopia and the African Union, and had also been posted to Myanmar, the United Arab Emirates and Tonga.
Shepherd also worked in Geneva with the United Nations.
“This eclectic series of ambassadorial roles demonstrates how keenly Mr Shepherd undertook the variety of professional challenges to come his way during a long and distinguished diplomatic career,” Peters said.
This article is republished by the Pacific Media Centre under a partnership agreement with RNZ.
