Unutea Hirshon
Member of the Assembly of French Polynesia
In office
May 6, 2001 – May 4, 2013
Personal details
Born1947 (age 76–77)
Papeete, Tahiti, French Polynesia
Political partyTavini Huiraatira
NicknameTea Hirshon

Unutea "Tea" Hirshon (born 1947) is a Tahitian politician and activist known for her support of French Polynesian independence and her opposition to French nuclear weapons testing in the Pacific. From 2001 to 2013, she served as a member of the Assembly of French Polynesia.

Biography

Unutea Hirshon was born in 1947 in Papeete, French Polynesia.[1][2] Her mother was from Papeete, and her father was from New York.[3] She was baptized as Séverine but preferred to go by Tea, short for her Tahitian name Unutea.[3]

As a young woman, Hirshon was inspired to fight for Pacific independence and against nuclear activity there after meeting the Tahitian independence leader Pouvanaa a Oopa while visiting France in 1966.[1] As a peace activist, she worked with the Tahitian branch of the Women's International League for Peace and Freedom.[1] She became deeply involved in the fight against nuclear testing in French Polynesia via France's Pacific Experimentation Center, joining the Nuclear Free and Independent Pacific Movement, with historians describing her as part of a coalition of "radical antinuclear activists" in the 1970s.[1][4] Decades later, she has been described as an "elder in the independence movement of French Polynesia."[1]

Hirshon also became active as a politician, joining the pro-independence Tavini Huiraatira party.[1][5] She was later described as a "leading political figure" in the party's Union for Democracy coalition.[6] On May 6, 2001, she was elected to the Assembly of French Polynesia, where she served until May 4, 2013.[1][7][8][5][9][10] In 2011, she was named first questeur of the Bureau of the Assembly.[11]

From 2005-2006, she served as president of the legislature's Commission of Inquiry into the Consequences of Nuclear Tests in French Polynesia, which produced a two-volume report on the issue.[7][12][13][14][15] In addition to promoting her central causes of peace and independence,[16] Hirshon raised a variety of other issues during her time in the assembly, including the issue of Tahitian language accessibility in the legislature.[17]

Hirshon has also long been involved in arts and preserving cultural heritage, including through dance, tattoos, music, record production, and exhibits.[1][18][19] She also served until 2012 as president of the Board of Directors of Tahiti Nui Television.[20][21]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 "Unutea Hirshon (French Polynesia)". 1000 PeaceWomen. Retrieved 2022-09-06.
  2. ↑ "Severine Tea Hirshon". The Peerage. Retrieved 2022-09-06.
  3. 1 2 "International Debutante Ball Is Held at the Astor Amid Pink and Silver Decor; 53 Girls From 16 Countries Bow at Spectacular Fete". The New York Times. 1964-12-30. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2022-09-06.
  4. ↑ Maurer, Anaïs (Fall 2021). "Bonded by the Bomb: Asian-Oceanian Alliances against French Nuclear Tests". Critical Ethnic Studies Journal. 7 (2).
  5. 1 2 Polynesia Country Study Guide Volume 1 Strategic Information and Developments. International Business Publications. 2010. ISBN 978-1-4387-3932-8.
  6. ↑ Levine, Stephen (2016-06-01). Pacific Ways: Government and Politics in the Pacific Islands. Victoria University Press. ISBN 978-1-77656-026-4.
  7. 1 2 "UNE REALITE PROUVÉE PAR LA COMMISSION D'ENQUÊTE" (PDF). Conseil d'Orientation pour le Suivi des Conséquences des Essais Nucléaires (in French). Retrieved 2022-09-06.
  8. ↑ Bitouzet, Laurent (2012-09-25). "Journal de 12:00 le 25/09/12". Radio1 Tahiti (in French). Retrieved 2022-09-06.
  9. ↑ Loubet, Mireille (2013-05-06). "Assemblée de Polynésie : un paysage politique considérablement remanié". Tahiti Infos (in French). Retrieved 2022-09-06.
  10. ↑ "Représentants". Assemblée de la Polynésie française (in French). Retrieved 2022-09-06.
  11. ↑ K, F. (2011-04-14). "Jacqui Drollet élu président de l'Assemblée au terme d'une séance à rebondissements". Tahiti Infos (in French). Retrieved 2022-09-06.
  12. ↑ Prashad, Vijay (2021-11-04). "As the planet wants to go green, France has a nuclear habit it just cannot kick". Peoples Dispatch. Retrieved 2022-09-06.
  13. ↑ Maclellan, Nic (2021-07-21). "Macron, memory and Moruroa". Inside Story. Retrieved 2022-09-06.
  14. ↑ "French Polynesian council snubs French visit to Mururoa". RNZ. 2006-05-17. Retrieved 2022-09-06.
  15. ↑ Gelin, Olivier (2006-01-28). "Un rapport conclut à la nocivité des essais nucléaires français". Le Monde (in French). Retrieved 2022-09-06.
  16. ↑ "French nuclear safety claim labelled a stunt". RNZ. 2006-06-28. Retrieved 2022-09-06.
  17. ↑ "Call for interpreters in French Polynesian Assembly following law cancellation". RNZ. 2007-03-02. Retrieved 2022-09-06.
  18. ↑ Iyechad, Gwenda L. (1990-10-02). "Tensions threaten Tahiti's harmony". Honolulu Star-Bulletin.
  19. ↑ "Journée détente 9... sous le signe de la convivialité". Le site officiel de la Ville de Papeete (in French). 2012. Retrieved 2022-09-06.
  20. ↑ "La rédaction de TNTV répond à Unutea Hirshon". Tahiti Infos (in French). 2012-08-01. Retrieved 2022-09-06.
  21. ↑ ML (2012-11-23). "Tiraillements politiques autour de TNTV". Tahiti Infos (in French). Retrieved 2022-09-06.
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