Dame Sukhinder Kaur Gill Turner DNZM (born Sukhinder Kaur Gill, 13 April 1952), commonly known as Sukhi Turner, is a New Zealand politician who served as the Mayor of Dunedin, New Zealand, from 1995 until her retirement from the position in 2004. She was also regarded by some as New Zealand's most prominent politician from the country's Indian community.
Dame Sukhi Turner | |
|---|---|
 Turner in 2009 | |
| 55th Mayor of Dunedin | |
| In office 1995–2004 | |
| Preceded by | Richard Walls |
| Succeeded by | Peter Chin |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Sukhinder Kaur Gill 13 April 1952 Ludhiana, India |
| Nationality | New Zealand |
| Political party | Green |
| Spouse | |
| Children | 2 |
Early life
editTurner was born in Ludhiana, the largest city in the Indian state of Punjab, to Squadron Leader Jasbir Singh Gill and Premjit Kaur on 13 April 1952.[1][2]
Born as Sukhinder Kaur Gill, she is a Sikh. She attended Bethany College, West Virginia, United States, gaining qualifications in history and political science. She moved to New Zealand after marrying Glenn Turner, a prominent New Zealand cricket player, in July 1973, and became a naturalised New Zealander in August 1973.[2] Sukhi and Glenn Turner settled in Dunedin in 1982. They have two children.[3]
Political career
editTurner has taken part in a wide range of community work, focusing particularly on education. She has taken an active role in school committees and associations, and in 1992,[4] successfully stood for election to the Dunedin City Council. After a three-year term on the council, Turner chose to contest the mayoralty, challenging long-serving incumbent Richard Walls. She was successful, and was subsequently re-elected twice. Her win over sitting mayor Richard Walls was reported on widely and she was noted for bringing diversity to the mayoralty, with Wellington newspaper The Evening Post stating of Turner "Dunedin voters broke new ground. Their new mayor is a woman, an Indian and a Green."[5] Turner announced that she would retire from the position in October 2004, when her third term expired. She was replaced by Peter Chin.[3][6]
In 1993, Turner was awarded the New Zealand Suffrage Centennial Medal.[7]
Life after politics
editIn the 2002 Queen's Birthday and Golden Jubilee Honours, Turner was appointed a Distinguished Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit, for services to local government.[8] Following the reinstatement of titular honours by the New Zealand government in 2009, she accepted redesignation as a Dame Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit.[9]
In early 2004, Turner was among the recipients of the Pravasi Bharatiya Samman, an award given by the Indian government to honour those who have made a significant contribution to Indian immigrant communities in other countries.[citation needed]
References
edit- ^ Singh, Teena (2 December 2001). "Ludhiana girl's hat-trick as mayor in New Zealand". The Tribune, Chandigarh. Retrieved 10 January 2013.
- ^ a b "New Zealand, naturalisations". Ancestry.com Operations. 2010. Retrieved 10 November 2016.
- ^ a b Kumar, Rajesh. "Bowling 'em over". India Empire. Retrieved 1 February 2017.
- ^ "Sukhi Turner: Politician by choice, Punjabi at heart, Kiwi by nature". The Tribune. 18 February 2020. Retrieved 18 February 2020.
- ^ Martin, Caroline (25 October 1995). "Shaking the old guard". The Evening Post. p. 7.
- ^ "Mayoralty campaign heats up in cold southern winter with record candidates". 19 August 2019. Retrieved 11 February 2021.
- ^ "The New Zealand Suffrage Centennial Medal 1993 – register of recipients". Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet. 26 July 2018. Retrieved 18 September 2018.
- ^ "Queen's Birthday and Golden Jubilee honours list 2002". Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet. 3 June 2002. Retrieved 25 June 2020.
- ^ "Special honours list 1 August 2009". Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet. 5 April 2011. Retrieved 25 June 2020.