Aussie wrote on Jan 3^rd, 2016 at 1:41pm:
Get up to date fool.

Otago Times.


Prime Minister John Key says close to 200 New Zealanders are being kept in the infamous Christmas Island detention centre, awaiting their deportation back across the Tasman.


Under recently introduced law, anyone who has been jailed for two years or more can have their visa cancelled and be deported.


Many of them end up on Christmas Island while waiting to be kicked out, including increasing numbers of New Zealanders.




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Greg Barns of the Australian Lawyers Alliance says the conditions on Christmas Island amount to "torture", and that people who may have spent their entire life in Australia but were born to Kiwi parents were being swept up in the rule change.


"I think the NZ government needs to look at it this way - does it want its citizens treated in this way, that is sent off to a remote island, ripped away from families, sent into a position which effectively amounts to torture and cruel and unusual punishment, that is living on an island with no access to their lawyers , no access to their families and being in detention for long periods of time?" he says.


"I think the NZ government ought to be very concerned about the

Like thousands of other Kiwis who make the trip across the Tasman Sea, Junior Togatuki came to Australia with his family as a young child in search of a better life.

But life in Australia was not easy for Togatuki, who found himself on the wrong side of the tracks during his teenage years, and was sentenced to a lengthy term of imprisonment at the age of 16 after taking part in an armed robbery.

But despite calling Australia home for nearly twenty years, our government made the decision to deport him back to New Zealand at the end of his sentence under recent amendments to the Migration Act.

After that decision, Togatuki, who suffered from anxiety and schizophrenia, found his mental state rapidly deteriorating.

Although being due for release, the government’s decision meant that Togatuki was required to remain in ‘de-facto immigration detention’ while awaiting deportation.

On September 12, just three weeks before he was to be deported, Togatuki was found dead in his isolation cell at the Goulburn Supermax Prison, having committed suicide using a razor blade.

In the days leading up to his tragic death, Togatuki had reportedly pleaded with Immigration Minister Peter Dutton to stop his deportation, saying that he had no family, friends, home or job in New Zealand and was ‘uncomfortable having the identity of a Kiwi.’

With around 200 Kiwis currently in detention in Australiam and seven facing deportation for committing offences, there are grave concerns that further tragedies could occur in the future.

The New Zealand government has called on Australian to address the situation, even in cases where Kiwis who are long term Australian residents have committed crimes.

Current Laws

Togatuki, along with other New Zealanders, was issued with a Special Category Visa; which enabled him to live and work in Australia for as long as he wished – as long as he remained a ‘person of good character.’

Special Category Visas were introduced by the Australian Government in 1994 to honour the close relationship between Australia and New Zealand. They allow eligible Kiwis to remain in Australia to live and work indefinitely – but they are, technically, temporary visas; meaning that holders cannot claim a range of welfare and other benefits.

In December last year, the Migration Act was amended to give the Immigration Minister new powers to deport non-citizens, including special category visa holders, if they have been convicted of an offence for which they were sentenced to a term of imprisonment for greater than one year.

Since then, it is estimated that 372 Kiwis have had their visas cancelled, with 119 being deported back to NZ this year alone. A large number remain in immigration detention awaiting deportation.

Police speculate that up to 1000 New Zealanders could be deported in the next five years.

Deporting Long Term Residents

The case of Junior Togatuki has angered many Kiwis, who argue that long term expats with limited ties to their home country should not be forcibly deported.

The widespread media coverage of Togatuki’s tragic suicide has even attracted the attention of NZ Prime Minister John Key, who has called the policy ‘too harsh’, and flagged it as an issue to be raised with Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull in the near future.

New Zealand politicians are also concerned with the treatment of those who are awaiting deportation in detention centres and prisons around Australia.

It is reported that around 75 New Zealanders are currently being held on Christmas Island awaiting deportation, with many more expected to arrive there in the near future. However, the NZ government has not been given details about those being held, and their treatment in immigration detention. With the appalling conditions inside Australia’s immigration detention centres featuring heavily in the media, there are concerns that Kiwis could also be experiencing degrading treatment.

New Zealanders have foreshadowed a deterioration in the usually friendly relationship between NZ and Australia if these issues are ignored, with some saying that it displays ‘contempt’ towards New Zealand and its citizens.

But while the NZ government argues that its citizens deserve favourable treatment because of the historical relationship between the two countries, others contend that all non-citizens should be treated equally in the eyes of the law, and accordingly should be deported regardless of their birth country.

The NZ government has also voiced concerns that deportees could return to engage in criminal conduct back home, with a lack of family support and limited work and education opportunities in NZ increasing the risk of offending. The government also says that there are limited means of ‘monitoring deported offenders or obtaining reliable information on their risk before they returned.’

However, our Justice Minister Amy Adams has announced a new system that will list the New Zealan citizens that are being deported due to criminal activity. She has also proposed new legislation that will impose monitoring and conditions upon those being deported back to NZ.

But while these measures will increase transparency, they do little to ease the very real concerns about the treatment of those held in Australian detention centres.

It is argued that such considerations need to be addressed to prevent future tragedies – and that a proper assessment should be made of the new powers bestowed upon the Minister, some of which take power away

the good ole boys wrote on Jan 3^rd, 2016 at 1:49pm:


Sorry....200 is it?  What happened to your 1000?

Aussie wrote on Jan 3^rd, 2016 at 1:53pm:
Can't you read. That's in detention. Some are in jail. It's a retrospective law brought in by Howard with a growing list.

Nearly 600 New Zealanders have been awaiting deportation from Australia, with at least 34 people convicted of child sex offences, 22 for murder and 16 rape or sexual assault.



There were 585 Kiwis waiting for their Australian visas to be cancelled as of May 31, 2015 according to Australian government figures, with the majority convicted for assault and other violent offences.



Justice Minister Amy Adams said earlier on Tuesday she would seek assurances from Australian immigration minister Peter Dutton that Kiwis won't be unnecessarily delayed if they ask to come back to New Zealand while they appeal their deportation.



It kick-started a fiery day of New Zealand politics as furious opposition MPs walked out of parliament after Prime Minister John Key accused them of being more interested in protecting rapists and murderers than ordinary New Zealanders.



Labour leader Andrew Little later said Mr Key had hit a new low with a "weak and gutless display" during question time.



"He knows he's on the back foot ... and his only response is to lash out," Mr Little said.



The row broke out as Mr Key faced hostile questions from opposition MPs who don't think he's being tough enough with Australia.



Earlier, as Mr Key walked into parliament, Labour's Kelvin Davis tried to confront him but was pushed aside by the prime minister's security staff.



"You're gutless, prime minister", Mr Davis shouted at Mr Key.



In parliament, Mr Key said the government had repeatedly raised with Australia the plight of detainees and had been given assurances they could return to New Zealand if they wanted and appeal their deportations from there.



"Some of them are rapists, some of them are child molesters, some of them are murderers and these are the people the Labour Party is saying are more important to support than New Zealanders who need protecting when they come back here," he said.



"And Mr Davis - if you want to put yourself on the side of sex offenders go ahead, my son, but we will defend New Zealanders."



Mr Key met with his Australian counterpart Malcolm Turnbull last month and the New Zealand government was assured Kiwis would be able to return home quickly while they await the outcome of their appeals, rather than remain in a detention centre.



Mr Key told reporters detainees should only be waiting weeks, not months, to come back.



There are a number of things that could delay someone's return to New Zealand, including the need to get a passport, or security concerns that would warrant someone requiring a charter flight.



Labour leader Andrew Little said his office had received advice from Australian authorities that Kiwis could end up waiting 20 weeks to come back.



"It clearly isn't the case that it is easy for people in this situation to just leave and come back to New Zealand," he said.



Australia's tough new immigration rules came into effect late last year.



Those rules mean anyone who has been sentenced to 12 months or more in prison will be deported.


That's May this year.

greggerypeccary wrote on Jan 3^rd, 2016 at 2:00pm:
You can't even see the difference between the number of people in detention and the number waiting to be deported. DERRRR!!!

Gnads wrote on Jan 3^rd, 2016 at 8:21pm:


Are you really telling me that there are more white freckles up here than black ones?  Fairbloodydinkum!

Now, can you produce a link about the % of Torres Strait Islanders/overall population in Qld jails?