Portal:New Zealand
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New Zealand or Aotearoa, the Land of the Long White Cloud, is a country of two large islands and many much smaller islands in the south-western Pacific Ocean. Among South Pacific nations, New Zealand has the largest and most industrialised economy and is second only to Papua New Guinea in population. New Zealand is notable for its isolation, being separated from Australia on the northwest by the Tasman Sea, some 2,000 km wide. The closest neighbours to the north are New Caledonia, Fiji and Tonga. Elizabeth II is the Queen of New Zealand and is represented in the country by a non-partisan Governor-General. Political power is held by the Prime Minister who is leader of the Government in the democratically elected Parliament of New Zealand. The monarch's Realm of New Zealand also includes the Cook Islands and Niue, which are entirely self-governing; Tokelau, and New Zealand's claim in Antarctica.  There are 14 national parks of New Zealand, covering just under 25,000 km², 20 forest parks covering some 18,000 km², about 3,500 reserves covering around 15,000 km², and some 610 km² of protected private land and covenants that have been set aside for scenic, scientific or ecological reasons. The Department of Conservation administers the majority of the publicly owned land in New Zealand that is protected for scenic, scientific, historic and cultural reasons, or set aside for recreational purposes. More than 80,000 km² – nearly 30 percent of the nation's total area – are administered by the department. It also has a role in management of the coastal marine area with 19 marine reserves and two other protected marine areas. The National Parks Act 1980 provides for the establishment of national parks or reserves and also provides for the public to have freedom of entry and access to the parks.  Hanmer Springs is a small town in the Canterbury region of the South Island of New Zealand. It is located inland, 65 kilometres southwest from Kaikoura, on a minor road 10 kilometres north of State Highway 7, the northern route between Christchurch and the West Coast via Lewis Pass. ...that Mauisaurus was the largest plesiosaur to roam New Zealand waters and that it gets its name from the Māori god Māui? ...that it was during the Ngati Whatua victory at the battle of Te Kai a te Karoro, or Seagull's Feast, that Ngapuhi became the first Maori to use muskets in combat? ...that The Edgar Centre in Dunedin is the largest single-building indoor sports arena in the Southern Hemisphere? ...that Pakeha Maori missionary Thomas Kendall was sacked for gun running? 
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