Dame Margaret Laurence Salas (née Hay; 8 February 1922 – 26 January 2017), known as Laurie Salas, was a New Zealand women's rights and peace activist.

Early life and family

Born in

Wellington Wellington ( mi, Te Whanganui-a-Tara or ) is the capital city of New Zealand. It is located at the south-western tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Remutaka Range. Wellington is the second-largest city in New Zealand by me ...

in 1922, Salas was one of four children of philanthropist James Lawrence Hay and Davidina Mertel Hay (née Gunn); her siblings included Sir Hamish Hay and Sir David Hay. She was educated at

Rangi Ruru Girls' School Rangi Ruru Girls' School is a New Zealand private girls' day and boarding secondary school located in Merivale, an inner suburb of Christchurch. The school is affiliated to the Presbyterian Church, and serves approximately girls from Years 7 ...

Christchurch Christchurch ( ; mi, Ōtautahi) is the largest city in the South Island of New Zealand and the seat of the Canterbury Region. Christchurch lies on the South Island's east coast, just north of Banks Peninsula on Pegasus Bay. The Avon River / ...

, and studied at

Canterbury University College The University of Canterbury ( mi, Te Whare Wānanga o Waitaha; postnominal abbreviation ''Cantuar.'' or ''Cant.'' for ''Cantuariensis'', the Latin name for Canterbury) is a public research university based in Christchurch, New Zealand. It was f ...

, graduating with a

Bachelor of Arts Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four years ...

in 1942. On 17 May 1941 she married Ian Halliday Webster at St Ninian's Presbyterian Church,

Riccarton Riccarton may refer to: New Zealand * Riccarton, New Zealand, a suburb of Christchurch ** Riccarton (New Zealand electorate), the electorate named after it ** The location of Riccarton Race Course * a locality on the Taieri Plains in Otago Scotlan ...

, but he died in 1943 from a sting to the neck that became infected. She went on to marry Jack Reuben Salas, an ENT specialist, and the couple had six children.

Activism

Salas was involved with the

Playcentre Playcentre is an early childhood education and parenting organisation which operates parent-led early childhood education centres throughout New Zealand and offers parents the opportunity to gain a Certificate in ''Early Childhood and Adult Educat ...

movement, and became that organisation's first representative on the National Council of Women. She went on to serve the latter body as its national secretary between 1976 and 1980, and its vice president between 1982 and 1986. She was president of the United Nations Association of New Zealand, and vice president of the

World Federation of United Nations Associations The World Federation of United Nations Associations (WFUNA) (French: ''Fédération Mondiale des Associations pour les Nations Unies'', FMANU) was founded in 1946 as a Federation of national associations. Its objectives are to promote the values o ...

. For nine years she was a member of the public advisory committee for disarmament and arms control. Salas was a New Zealand committee member for the

Council for Security Cooperation in the Asia Pacific The Council for Security Cooperation in the Asia-Pacific (CSCAP) is a "non-governmental (second track) process for dialogue on security issues in Asia Pacific." There are currently twenty one member committees of CSCAP (from Australia, Cambodia, Ca ...

, and she was also an honorary vice president of the New Zealand Institute of International Affairs. Salas was active in the peace movement throughout her life, and advocated for improvements in the status, safety and security of women. In 1982 she represented New Zealand at the United Nations session on disarmament and at the Women of the World Working for Peace conference in New York.

Honours and awards

In the 1982 Queen's Birthday Honours, Salas was appointed a

Companion of the Queen's Service Order The Queen's Service Order, established by royal warrant of Queen Elizabeth II on 13 March 1975, is used to recognise "valuable voluntary service to the community or meritorious and faithful services to the Crown or similar services within the pu ...

for community service. She was made a

Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...

, for services to the community, six years later in the 1988 Queen's Birthday Honours. She also received the

Queen Elizabeth II Silver Jubilee Medal The Queen Elizabeth II Silver Jubilee Medal (french: link=no, Médaille du jubilé d'argent de la reine Elizabeth II) is a commemorative medal created in 1977 to mark the 25th anniversary of Queen Elizabeth II's accession in 1952. The medal is p ...

in 1977, and the

New Zealand 1990 Commemoration Medal The New Zealand 1990 Commemoration Medal was a commemorative medal awarded in New Zealand in 1990 to celebrate the 150th anniversary of the signing of the Treaty of Waitangi, and was awarded to approximately 3,000 people. Background The New Zea ...

Death

Salas died at Sprott House in the Wellington suburb of

Karori Karori is a suburb located at the western edge of the urban area of Wellington, New Zealand, 4 km from the city centre and is one of New Zealand's most populous suburbs, with a population of in History Origins The name ''Karori'' used ...

on 26 January 2017, less than two weeks before her 95th birthday.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Salas, Laurie 1922 births 2017 deaths People from Wellington City People educated at Rangi Ruru Girls' School University of Canterbury alumni New Zealand women's rights activists New Zealand anti–nuclear weapons activists Companions of the Queen's Service Order New Zealand Dames Commander of the Order of the British Empire New Zealand anti-war activists