9. KEITH LOCKE (Green) Link to this
to the Minister of Immigration
Does he agree with Amnesty International that it is unsafe for proven Christian converts to return to Iran; if not, why not?
Hon DAVID CUNLIFFE (Minister of Immigration) Link to this
My agreement or otherwise is immaterial. Although I respect the work of Amnesty International, determination of these matters does not lie with politicians or with interest groups but with a well-respected, independent appeals process that has access to all of the facts and hears the case in a fair and unbiased manner.
I raise a point of order, Madam Speaker. I do not think the Minister has addressed the question, because the situation in Iran is certainly relevant if people are going to be deported there.
Madam SPEAKERIs the Minister really going to stand by and watch Iranian Ali Panah die due to a hunger strike or be deported back to Iran where Amnesty International so rightly believes he will not be safe?
Hon DAVID CUNLIFFE Link to this
As the member well knows, it is not possible for me to go into the details of an individual case, but it is well known that the gentleman concerned has a number of options that would allow him to leave New Zealand at any time.
Russell Fairbrother Link to this
Is it always essential that people served with removal orders are involuntarily returned to their country of origin?
Hon DAVID CUNLIFFE Link to this
By no means. The vast majority of people who are served with removal orders depart New Zealand voluntarily to either their home country or a third country. They can leave at any time, to any country that they have a right of entry to. I note that a Scoop article recently published a report noting that: “Mr Panah could sign a paper that would authorise his deportation back to the last port he had exited before arriving in New Zealand.”
Gordon CopelandIs the Minister aware that under the law of Iran it is illegal to convert from Islam to Christianity, that the maximum penalty is death, and that such executions occasionally occur; if so, is it not unconscionable to deport Iranians now living in New Zealand who have so converted and whose conversion is genuine and verifiable?
Hon DAVID CUNLIFFE Link to this
Yes; and I would expect the widely respected Refugee Status Appeals Authority was also well aware of that fact when it reached its decision on his appeal. By implication from the member’s question, if I were to hold as a matter of policy that no Christian convert could be returned to the Republic of Iran, I suspect that the New Zealand churches would swell in membership.
Peter BrownDoes the Minister accept that allowing people to remain here, simply because they have allegedly changed their religion, will make us appear like a soft touch; and will he confirm that that is not the impression New Zealand wants to give to the wider world?
Hon DAVID CUNLIFFE Link to this
Government policy in this area seeks to strike a proper balance between a fair and humane approach that is respectful of everybody’s human rights, and our obligations under refugee law. At the same time, if we have established a proper legal process with due appeal rights, then we must abide by that process when decisions have been made.
I seek leave to table a speech from 30 October on the deteriorating situation in Iran in relation to Christians, by New Zealand’s UN representative, Rosemary Banks.
Hon DAVID CUNLIFFE Link to this
I seek leave to table an article from Scoop news on Friday, 10 August, which notes a report that Mr Panah and his lawyer were offered a deal—
Will the Minister offer the House his view as to whether he is concerned by a situation when someone arrived here 4 years ago, was denied refugee status, yet some time later—4 years later—declares he is a Christian and demands to stay; is the Minister comfortable with that position?
Hon DAVID CUNLIFFE Link to this
I can make no comment on any individual case, and I would not seek to enter an opinion on the genuineness of any individual’s conversion to Christianity. But the member and his party are supporting a bill that will soon be debated in this House that will tidy up an appeals system that many commentators have held to be excessively open-ended.