Hauora: Winter Wellbeing

This morning I woke up to the pitter patter of rain on the window outside. I opened the curtains to the bright. green bush and gazed over the lush Waitakeres as it expanded all the way to the ocean.

I enjoyed the peace for a brief moment before I had to rush off to head from the quiet serenity into the CBD. My drive was dusty and a layer of water made the asphalt glisten. I was grateful for the soft humming music while I ate my toast as my car glided down the hill.

Today I was feeling that I had a lot of work to punch through and it was quite overwhelming. My to-do list carried over an entire page and I was aching for a kawakawa tonic to carry my energy.

To maintain my hauora (health) and mauri (life-force), I decided to take out some time for myself after completing a couple of my bigger ticket items.

My black waka circled the carpark at The Domain in Grafton twice before I was able to find a carpark, it seemed that a few people had the same idea as I did. The sports fields were glistening with the rain that weighed lightly on it and provided a strong contrast against a grey, gloomy sky.

I could slowly feel the air changing around me, the water on the leaves of the tree providing a light aroma that invited me into the Winter Gardens.

Hauora, is a Maori concept of wellbeing and health. It looks at health in the physical body, mind, spirit, and social relationships. These four areas are likened to a house and being the walls that keep it standing. When one wall is weakened, then the whole house is weakened as each element supports and influences the other.

Dr. Mason Durie compares this to a whare in his Te Whare Tapa Wha model which is outlined below. He touches on these four elements needing symmetry and strength for optimum functionality.

Source: http://health.tki.org.nz/Teaching-in-HPE/Health-and-PE-in-the-NZC/Health-and-PE-in-the-NZC-1999/Underlying-concepts/Well-being-hauora

Today, I was focusing on my taha hinengaro, my mental well-being. The psychology of the colour green promotes peacefulness which is why nature is often so calming and relieves mental stress. The decision to go to the Winter Gardens was to increase the clean oxygen in my tinana (body) and through seeing the greenery increased my serotonin and dopamine levels which in turn had a calming effect on my hinengaro.

Lately, I've been putting more of an active focus on how I am maintaining my hauora to push myself and my productivity. Taking just an hour out of our days to do something to recharge can increase the positivity and help us to see more of the possibility in our day to day lives. Not only this, but as these four elements have an effect on one another, to look after one is to look after them all. My maintaining your whare (house) which can be likened to ourselves, we can stand tall, proud, and be effective in all that we do.

What ways do you maintain your hauora?

Do you have certain places or areas that you like to go to recharge?

Is there an element that you feel lacks and needs strengthening?

Through the process of asking these questions, we can examine deeper into how we look after ourselves. Are we a strong house or a weak house? What small changes can we do that will have a big difference?

Leave your thoughts in the comments or hit me up on Twitter

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Graduation of the Christian Mission Center Class 108-6 - Africa, a Trumpet of Victory. Healing all Nations with the Light of Peace

Shincheonji Church is the church belonging to Jesus that are equipping people with knowledge and understanding of the Bible. To understand greater, have a read of this article of the Biblical Introduction to Shincheonji Church. Shincheonji Church is focusing its efforts to reestablish peoples identity in God by teaching exclusively from the Word of God. Within Korea and Internationally, they are putting in their effort to realign peoples thoughts to Gods as well as volunteering to create a better society for humanity.

One of the church's main initiatives is their graduations from their theology schools -- Zion Mission Centre. Across the world there has been hundreds of congregation members graduating:

13th of May - Germany - 487 graduates
4th of June - U.S.A. - 545 graduates
24th of June - Korea - 3,111 graduates

Shincheonji Church has a strong devotion to missionary work through the Bible as seen by the number of graduates. Consequently more than 50,000 people entered the Bible study course and 4,000 completed the course in the first half of the year. Moreover, as of the end of June, more than 20,000 people are waiting for graduation.

Evenmoreso, 1,000 people among them studied in Los Angeles and around Europe highlighting the globalisation of the church's growth. To add to this, starting with Republic of South Africa in August, a monthly graduation ceremony will be held until the end of the year.

The graduation was full of hope and joy and was streamed live around the world. Even among those graduating was one person who previously belonged to Islam, and another two to Hinduism. Unfortunately, there is only a Korean translation of the sermon from the graduation, but here is a link for a deeper look into the event:

In total, 23,502 people (19656 in Korea, 3846 in overseas) joined the church in 2017 alone. Presently there are more than 200,000 congregation members walking their faith walks in 69 churches in Korea and 33 churches overseas.

In Korea, the members of Protestant Churches belonging to the Christian Council of Korea have decreased from 12 million to 1.8 million. However, the member count is skyrocketing around the world as people flock to hear and understand the Word that is currently fulfilling.

Want to learn more?
- Gods Glorious Graduation in LA
- Shincheonji Volunteers: Sharing Love By Farming
- Biblical Introduction to Shincheonji Church

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Biblical introduction to Shincheonji Church

What is Shincheonji?

Shincheonji, or SCJ in short is formally known as 'Shincheonji Church of Jesus, The Temple of the Tabernacle of the Testimony'. 

The church is the nation of God, that he created, with the purpose to fulfill what is in Heaven on the Earth. Additionally, it is to be a Holy Temple where the priests described in the book of Revelation can be found, the people of God -- all of which receive salvation with God. Finally, it is the recreation of the 12 tribes of Israel, a mission that God has been working for 6,000 years to achieve after the fall of man in Adams generation.

2 Pt 3:13
"But in keeping with his promise we are looking forward to a new heaven and new earth, the home of righteousness"

Their objective:
The goal of SCJ is to be the church that heals all the hearts of the people, testifying the relation and what the church has heard and witnessed, which is by the will of God.

Rv 1:2
"...who testifies to everything he saw -- that is, the word of God and the testimony of Jesus Christ".

Behind the name
'Shincheonji' is a Korean word which translates to 'New Heaven and New Earth'. It represents the new tabernacle and new saints that are established. In Moses time, he built a tabernacle on earth based on the patterns God had given to them from Heaven. In the same way, SCJ is also established based on what the Promised Pastor saw in the spiritual world as described in Revelation 4. Henceforth, SCJ is the Kingdom of God created on earth as it is in heaven.

Rv 14:1-5 [NIV 1984]

"Then I looked, and there before me was the Lamb, standing on Mount Zion, and with him 144,000 who had his name and his Father's name written on their foreheads. And I heard a sound from heaven like the roar of rushing waters and like a loud peal of thunder. The sound I heard was like that of harpists playing their harps. And they sand a new song before the throne and before the four living creatures and the elders. No-one could learn the song except the 144,000 who had been redeemed from the earth. These are those who did not defile themselves with women, for they kept themselves pure. They follow the Lamb wherever he goes. They were purchased from among men and offered as firstfruits to God and the Lamb. No lie was found in their mouths; they are blameless.

Rv 15:2-5 [NKJV, 1982]

And I saw something like a sea of glass mingled with fire, and those who have the victory over the beast, over his image and over his mark and over the number of his name, standing on the sea of glass, having harps of God. They sing the song of Moses, the servant of God, and the song of the Lamb, saying:“Great and marvelous are Your works,Lord God Almighty!Just and true are Your ways,O King of the saints!
Who shall not fear You, O Lord, and glorify Your name?For You alone are holy.For all nations shall come and worship before You,For Your judgments have been manifested.”After these things I looked, and behold, the temple of the tabernacle of the testimony in heaven was opened.

Secondly, "Church of Jesus" refers that Jesus is Lord over the church as indicative from the name.

Thirdly, "The Temple of the Tabernacle of the Testimony" signifies the fact that the temple testifies the reality of the fulfilment of Revelation that is seen and heard as mentioned in the latter part of the quoted scripture above in Rev 15.

The history of God's salvation - 6,000 years
The Bible details in length the strenuous history that God has dealt with. In Isaiah 1, you can feel the anguished heart of God as he sees his children become corrupted, and are taken prisoner by their Gentile enemies. God told them ahead of time what would take place through numerous prophets to save them, as well as letting them know about a saviour who will come to rescue them from their sinful nature.

However, in light of this, Israel did not believe it and thought they were the only righteous and good people. The consequence of this was that God chose a new shepherd with the goal of recreating a new country, and punished the sinful people and the enemy that destroyed them.

It is only at this stage does divine judgement start and the past days come to an end -- all so that recreation can take place.

This vicious cycle has been continuing time and time again through every generation since Adams sin.

Jeremiah 31:22 [NKJV, 1982]

How long will you gad about,O you backsliding daughter?For the Lord has created a new thing in the earth—A woman shall encompass a man.”

The era of New Spiritual Israel
At Jesus' second coming, New Spiritual Israel begins -- it is the time where the shepherd promised comes and creates the New Kingdom according to the Bible.

Jesus returns and punishes the previous generation for its corruption and failure to keep the covenant God had left for them. After this, the creation of the 12 tribes of the new generation beings.

They are described as a Kingdom and Priests to God that are freed from sin by Jesus' blood. They are:

1. Born again through Gods seed.
2. They are harvested.
3. They are sealed with Gods name and the name of Jesus.
4. They do not add or take away from the words of the book of Revelation.
5. They belong to the 12 tribes of the promised nation.
6. They have their names written on the Book of Life.

John 14:23

Jesus answered him, “If anyone loves me, he will keep my word, and my Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him.

John 14:29

And now I have told you before it takes place, so that when it does take place you may believe. 

Zion Christian Mission Centre
Zion Christian Mission Centre is a free Bible study where God and his throne are. 

Why? 

It creates twelve tribes by sealing the harvested people with the new words, which implies that the words of Revelation have been fulfilled.

Here are some statistics from the previous year alone:

• 25,000 total graduated students (160,000 students total)
• 600 centres overseas (countries include, but are not limited to U.S.A., China, Japan, Canada, Germany, Netherlands, France, Spain, Austria, Italy, Australia, South Africa, India and the Philippines)
• Over 1,000 students graduating each month throughout the 12 tribes

What's the big deal?

Hundreds of international pastors have acknowledged that Shincheonji is the church that teaches truth and have in turn left their previous ordainments.

As God fulfilled his promise to Abraham at the time of Moses (Ex 12) and the Old Testament through Jesus at the first coming (Jn 19:30), likewise, the New Testament is being fulfilled and Shincheonji is the church that is testifying the physical fulfillment (Rv 1:2, Rv 10, 22:16).

This word is incredibly precious - it is priceless and untradeable even if the whole world was given in exchange; this is why it is given without charge.

Rv 22:17 [NIV 2011]

The Spirit and the bride say, “Come!” And let the one who hears say, “Come!” Let the one who is thirsty come; and let the one who wishes take the free gift of the water of life.

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Leadership series #1: What defines a leader?

Across the world both present and past, there is a vast array of leaders. Definition of leadership varies, some argue you are born with it, others say it can be taught. There is much debate around the philosophy of what qualities makes up a good leader, and what sort of leadership we should be fostering in the 21st century.

These are all topics I'd love to tackle and converse over with you as we navigate our way forward to a brighter, productive, prosperous future.

To begin this 12 part weekly series, I'll be examining a range of theories surrounding the kaupapa of what a good leader should be. Through these posts, I'd love to challenge you on new ways you can become a better leader and how you can contribute to a bigger picture in whatever context you find yourself in.

Firstly - how do we understand leadership? In an article written by Grint (2010), he discusses that leadership has been traditionally understood in four quite different ways.

These are as follows:

-- Leadership as a person [ the who ; biography ]
-- Leadership as results [ the what ; purpose ]
-- Leadership as position [the where ; authority/role ]
-- Leadership as process [ the how ; sense making ]

What Grint really puts emphasis on is how we should focus on the process -- putting 'ship' back into leadership. Again, it's the process, the how we lead in a modern capitalist society.

As a nation built on the back of pioneering voyagers, it's definitely an ode to our tupuna to examine this a little more closely.

What does it really mean to dig deep and ask ourselves this question: how are we leading in our lives?

Further questions are raised by academics Alvesson and Spicer (2012):

• Does leadership mean influencing all aspects, or is it suficient to have more of an influence on one of these variables?
• How is leadership different from other aspects like organisational structures and cultures which also influence outcomes?
• Do we only talk about a positive influence or is resistance also part of the picture?

All of the above are great starting points for conversation. And one I'd love to start with you through this series. 

For this introduction, I'll keep it brief, and to conclude I'd like to plant a thought and end of with a quote...

To ponder... How should we, as Aotearoa, do leadership differently to develop and foster a thriving future?

"Leadership is a social construction - the product of the emotional and often unconscious needs, early experiences and group aspirations of the led, as well as the traits and skills of the leader - our contraceptions of leadership are locking in a time-warp, constrained by lingering archetypes of heroic warriors and wise but distant fathers." (Sinclair, 2005)

Do you agree? Disagree? Let's explore the potential for more effective, relational, ethical and inclusive ways of exercising power and authority as we venture into these next 12 weeks together.

Nga mihi e te iwi!

- Atarangi

MORE ON LEADERSHIP:

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What and how: power of influnce

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Whakapapa: Adam and Eve

Introduction of People in the Bible

WHAKAPAPA | GENEALOGY #1 : Adam + Eve [Gen 1-3]

At the beginning of the 6,000 years of Gods history, God created the Garden of Eden in the east and dwelt there.

Before we break down the content of these chapters and understand who Adam and Eve were, it is important that we recognise that Genesis is not just a book of history, it is something deeper. Genesis 1 doesn’t record the creation of the physical Heaven and Earth, but the spiritual Heaven and Earth which are expressed through figuative explanations, through examples in the natural world for us to understand. If we were to read this chapter literally, we would be confused and frustrated by the contradictions that it has in a natural sense. Furthermore, there is scientific evidence that points to the world being over 1 billion years old with most scholars saying that Earths first life forms only existed 3.8 million years ago. With this evidence proved by geologists and biologists, this wouldn’t make sense and would infer that all these evidences are mere lies.

When we read the story of Genesis 1, it unpacks the 6 day process God took to create the Heaven and the Earth. First animals are created, then man. Genesis 2 describes Adam and the Garden of Eden. This may seem confusing, but Gn 2:19 says that God brought the animals he had already created to Adam. It doesn’t mean that God first created Adam and then the animals, Genesis 1 and 2 are in chronological order.

The second point to highlight here is the question often asked. Was Adam the man was the first man that was created? -- and the answer to that is no. The evidence can be found in Gn 4:13-14 where Cain, Adams son, was afraid other people would try and kill him. Another example of this is Gn 2:24 where it is implied that Adam has parents through God telling him to leave his parents and unite with his wife.

Continuing on, when we read Genesis 2, it specifically outlines the process of the creation of man. The creation described in a more in detail story of regarding the work that went on during the 6th day in Genesis 1. And so we come to the Garden of Eden and the main featured character who we commonly know as Adam.

What was Garden of Eden?

The Garden of Eden was the creation made by God. It was made first before man in the east and contained the following:

- The Tree of Life
- The Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil
- A river that seperated into four head waters
- The serpant

Where was the Garden of Eden?

The four rivers that flow from the Garden are the Pishon, the Gihon, the Hiddekel, and the Euphrates. The Hiddekel and the Euphrates are can be found near the Persian Gulf which is between the modern day Saudi Arabia and Iran, however, the location of the Pison and Gihon is still unknown.

Who was Adam and how was he created?

Adam was the first man, created by the dust of the earth. God breathed the breath of life in him so that God could be with him. Through the breath of life, God’s Word of Life, he became the first living being, the first man acknowledged by God.

When the breath of life was breathed in Adam, his spirit became living. Since Adams spirit was alive he was able to communicate with God as Gods word was the food that gave him life.

What was Adams duty?

Adam was given the task of overseeing the governance of the Garden of Eden and naming the creatures that dwelt there, he was the pastor of that generation.

Gods Covenant with Adam

God then established his covenant with him: he mustn’t eat from the tree of knowledge of good and evil or he will surely die. This was the Word that was entrusted to him that he was to keep.

Adam’s wife, Eve.

Among all that lived in the Garden, there was no suitable helper found for Adam. God saw that he was lonely, and caused Adam to fall into his sleep. During his slumber, he took one of the mans ribs and made a woman. God gave Eve to Adam and they became one, united in Gods words. They didn’t reveal each others faults which refers to them being naked without being shameful.

The Serpant

Within the Garden of Eden was a serpent who decieved both Adam and Eve through a series of events. The serpant approached Eve and questioned her, “Did God really say you must not eat from any tree in the garden?”. Who was this serpant? Rv 20:12 says that the ancient serpant is synonymous with the dragon, the devil and Satan, so we know that the serpant was Satan.

The Fall

Eve had desire in her heart and this led to the sin of disobedience to Gods covenant (Jms 1:15), and she ate from the tree of knowledge of good and evil. Eve saw that the fruit was good and pleasing to the eye so she took some to Adam and they both ate it. When they ate it, their eyes were opened and they saw their nakedness so they sewed fig leaves for themselves and hid.

Result of their Sin

God was walking in the Garden but because Adam and Eve were ashamed they remaining in their hiding. It was revealed to God what had happened and Eve said “the serpent deceived me, and I ate” (Gn 3:13). Following from this God cursed the serpent, Eve and Adam for breaking the covenant. They knew the Word that was given and should have obeyed but due to deception, corruption got a foothold and begun to infuiltrate the world.

 As a result of all of this, Adam and Eve were cast out of the Garden of Eden and God blocked the entrance to the Garden with an angel with a flaming sword. He was banished after he was decieved by Satan and God also left that place.

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Shincheonji Volunteers: Sharing Love By Farming

There's nothing quite like a classic kiwi working bee to help a mate out. The wonderful thing about volunteering is that it strips away any form of discrimination and is fueled by love and power of community. 

Earlier last month on the 5th, a group of Shincheonji volunteers spent time working with 7 groups in neighbouring areas in Korea. They rolled out again in force on the 15th as 30 volunteers from Shincheonji visited an onion farm in Punggak-myeon, Cheongdo. 

[On 15^of of June, Shincheonji volunteers Daegu branch is digging onions, visiting Punggak-myeon, Cheongdo Gyeongbuk. The owner of onion farm is having hard time in getting helps. Picture provided by Shincheonji volunteers]

During this time, the kaupapa of the community work is ‘sharing love and helping farming campaign’ in Punggak-myeon, Cheongdo Gyeongbuk.

Volunteers were sought after due to the toil farmers were in as they faced difficulties in getting farm hands on board. In response, 30 members from Shincheonji rolled up their sleeves and put in the mahi despite burning 30 degree heat.

[On 15^th of June, Shincheonji volunteers Daegu branch is helping harvest of onion in Punggak-myeon, Cheongdo Gyeongbuk. Picture provided by Shincheonji volunteers]

Farm owner, Song Young Gil, shared his appreication, “I was in trouble getting help at the time of harvesting onion. Shincheonji volunteers visited here just in time and helped harvesting."

Also on the 5th, Shincheonji volunteers visited a farm in Suri-ri Guji-myeon Dalseong-gun Daegu and helped to harvest garlic since the owner of the farm is also struggling to find help with his harvest - see the image below.

[Shincheonji volunteers Daegu branch is helping to harvest garlic in Suri-ri Guji-myeon Dalseong-gun Daegu. This volunteer work was held in association with 7 other groups from neighbor borough and district including Dalseong-gun. <Picture provided = Shincheonji volunteers Daegu branch>]

Another campaign that the volunteer group is implementing on a nation level is, ‘Hello, reaction’. 

Choi Myung Seok, branch manager of Shincheonji volunteers, said “Shincheonji church will continue helping farms which is under hard time getting help. Also, we will communicate and cooperate more with local community."

[Shincheonji volunteers Daegu branch is helping to harvest garlic in Suri-ri Guji-myeon Dalseong-gun Daegu. This volunteer work was held in association with 7 other groups from neighbor borough and district including Dalseong-gun. <Picture provided = Shincheonji volunteers Daegu branch>]

[Shincheonji volunteers Daegu branch is helped to harvest garlic in Suri-ri Guji-myeon Dalseong-gun Daegu. After volunteering with 7 other groups from neighbor borough and district including Dalseong-gun, they are taking picture. <Picture provided = Shincheonji volunteers Daegu branch>]

Seeing the change progress in the way this volunteer group is taking ownership of their country and serving its people is something I earnestly hope that all countries focus more on doing. Considering the peoples hearts despite the fact that Korea is still technically a country at war makes me wonder more about the way of peace and how their actions reflect the importance of unity, of kotahitanga.

It is always ourselves that must change first for anything else to come into play and all around New Zealand are opportunities to also make change for the better. As mentioned in an earlier post regarding the Bible Lifestyle, I would love to encourage you to seek out how spiritual equilibrium can be the turning point for seeing change in the external workings in your life such as your attitude, relationships, and work life. 

Nga mihi e hoa!

Mā te wā

KEEP READING: 

Original article of the Volunteer Work

Bible Lifestyle

Shincheonji Volunteers: How to Love Your Neighbours?

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Controversy in Mackenzie Country

Mackenzie Country stems kilometres of beautiful land in the South Island. I’ve had the absolute pleasure of being able to visit it on numerous occasions and every single time it has absolutely taken my breath away. 

While I was scrolling through my Twitter feed, I noticed ‘Mackenzie’ was trending and decided to see what was going on. I also had a couple of people protesting about stopping the increase of dairy in New Zealand – two topics that coincided with one another.

What is being proposed is 15,000 cow dairy expansion which will result in great economic profit, but it will be at the expense of tens of thousands of kilograms of nitrate pollution into the vulnerable lakes and waterways in the Mackenzie that greatly make up parts of the ecosystems in Te Waipounamu, the South Island.

Photo by Greenpeace

Where has all this come from?

“Dunedin accountant Murray Valentine has been methodical and meticulous in planning for a $100-million-plus dairy conversion in the Mackenzie Basin” explains David Williams, the Newsroom’s South Island correspondent and investigative writer. Williams breaks down the following information in the article:

- Valentine is the owner of Simons Pass Station which has 9,700ha of land (some of it is Crown owned)
- He has secured or sought after 80 consents to follow through with the irrigated dairy farm operation
- 15 years and millions of dollars have been spent preparing the farm
- More in depth information can be read here.

Essentially Valentine has been planning to create a self-contained farm, ship the animals in for the winter, and have a plot which would grow the feed for the cattle.

The controversy that surrounds this issue, largely posed by Greenpeace, is that around the environment pollution and damage that will scar the landscape of the ātaahua Te Manahuna. The kaupapa that they are supporting is showing governance of the land due to the uniqueness of the region.

The area that is going to be used for the farming is home to a variety of native flora and fauna, included the endangered kakī (black stilt) of which there are approximately 100 remaining.

The irony is that the landscape itself is extremely unsuited to dairy farming and protesters are arguing that one of the main issues is that by having the dairy farm here communicates just how extreme the industry has become here in New Zealand. Furthermore is the issue of how much detrimental damage the whenua will now have to bear with the effects of farming. Previously, I wrote a post on why we need Earth Day and in that post I outline more about the effects agriculture has environmentally.

Getting back to the action today, it’s reported that police spent the afternoon arresting people, having to use bolt cutters to release them from the machinery they had tied themselves to earlier.

Photo by John Bisset/Stuff

Is this behaviour from Greenpeace too extreme? Though it makes a point and I admire their efforts, I wonder what can be done to improve the overall impact that agriculture is having on Aotearoa, New Zealand.

Something I would challenge, especially with a Labour government is creating policies around reducing the waste, at the very least, that is created as a byproduct of dairy farming. It is evident that there is a lot of damage occurring due to the farming, but with the dairy industry contributing $8 million to our GDP in 2017, it wouldn’t be wise to pull the plug out from underneath us.

Therein, the question remains what the best way forward is. I wonder if there can be conferences made with both environmentalist, farmers, and business owners on how we can collectively embrace more kaitiakitanga towards this issue and work together going forward.

Sources:

• https://www.stuff.co.nz/business/farming/dairy/105157124/police-arrest-12-greenpeace-protesters-in-mackenzie-district
• https://www.greenpeace.org/new-zealand/greenpeace-activists-halt-dairy-conversion-in-the-mackenzie-country/
• https://www.newsroom.co.nz/2018/01/21/75698/mackenzie-divisions-as-wide-as-ever#
• https://www.nbr.co.nz/article/dairy-sector-contributes-8-billion-gdp-jw-199810

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