New Zealand will rise up unafraid, the head boy of a New Zealand school that lost two students in the mosque terror attacks has told a vigil for the victims.
"When you see hatred you say love, when you see anger you say peace," Cashmere High School's Okirano Tilaia told a crowd of thousands in Christchurch.
"We do not let these horrific events define who we are."
Fifty people were killed in attacks at Masjid al Noor and Linwood Masjid, and another 50 were injured.
Among them were Okirano's schoolmates, 14-year-old Sayyad Milne and Hamza Mustafa, 15.
Performances, speeches, hugs and applause brought together the community.
There was thanks for constant hands of help, from police making the community feel safe and the anonymous businesses who helped to rebuild the mosques.
Thousands gave a standing ovation for the emergency services who responded and for Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern, lauded as an example of what a leader should be.
Organiser Scott Esdaile said it didn't matter what a person's beliefs were or the colour of their skin.
"We are all human and we should continue to show each other the love we have showed this week," he said.
The event was opened with a prayer from Alabi Lateef Zirullah, an imam at Linwood Masjid.
It was followed by the reading of the names of those who died and a minute silence.
Smiles, cards and flowers had given the Muslim community strength in a time of sadness, University of Canterbury Muslim Association president Bariz Shah said.
"In te Reo there's a phrase that really stands out to me in these times - he waka eke noa - which represents that we're all in the same waka," he said, using the Maori word for a canoe or boat.
"After this tragedy I really see that. I see that in our New Zealand people."
But he asked the question so many have since the attack on March 15 - where do we go from here.
Standing strong and fighting fear is what happens next, he said.
Australian Associated Press
