Each year, overseas students in New Zealand hold an International Students Congress to meet together, to attend forums and workshops, play sport, and not least this year, participate in cultural concerts.

The 1978 Congress was held at Canterbury University for five days — a mammoth organisational task. The fact that the Congress ran so smoothly is an indication of the strength of overseas student clubs at Canterbury, especially the Canterbury Malaysian Students Association. The Congress was attended by 300 overseas students as well as a small but significant number of New Zealand students.

For most, overseas students just seem to fill up the library or gym and hang around in groups talking amongst themselves. The ISC gave the New Zealanders a chance to become part of the overseas community for five days. It meant not only learning about the various home countries, but also allowed us to get an insight of the way overseas students view New Zealand — especially in areas that affect them most like immigration laws.

Although not quite to the extent of last year's ISC in Wellington, there soon developed an atmosphere of genuine friendship among the participants: The huge cultural concert on the second night added tremendously to this with items from almost every resident nationality. Many of the Asian items depicted the life of peasants and ordinary people through dance and song. The evening finished with the traditional Chinese red silk dance — a spectacular display of coordination with eight dancers and 30 foot long red silk streamers.