Pregnant couple wins MIQ court fight
The stranded husband of pregnant Aucklander Roshni Sami has won an emergency MIQ spot, after the couple took the Government to court.
Sami’s case was due in court on Tuesday, but she received an email at 4.41pm yesterday to say their second application for an emergency MIQ spot had been approved. Nothing in her circumstances had changed since the first application was rejected.
Sami, who is 31 weeks pregnant, was relieved her husband Walter would be able to return from the United States for the birth.
However, that was tempered by anger at not getting her day in court. She has been campaigning to make pregnancy an MIQ priority category, as well as supporting pregnant couples stuck overseas or separated by New Zealand’s closed border.
‘‘Obviously I desperately wanted to see my husband, but I’m disappointed it had to come to this... The feeling of disappointment and frustration is overwhelming.’’
Sami knew of nine couples with babies due in the next three months and wanted a court ruling to help them. Since she started the campaign on September 23, two women had already had traumatic births without their partners to help, after their MIQ applications were refused. ‘‘It’s just crazy. It can’t be that you have to take the government to court to get entry, if pregnancy is an issue with MIQ ... There’s just too much risk for a very vulnerable time in your life.’’
The court preparation process had also been a huge waste of time and stress for her and her pro bono lawyer Tudor Clee.
However, Sami vowed to keep campaigning for a policy change.
‘‘Just because I’m OK, doesn’t mean to say anyone else is OK.’’
Sami had not yet seen the MIQ voucher, but hoped it would arrive in time for Walter to catch a flight arriving in New Zealand on Monday.
Between October 30, 2020 and October 5, 2021, MIQ received 229 applications involving pregnancy. Of those, just 23 were approved; 70 were declined; and 136 were in progress, cancelled or incomplete.
Joint Head of Managed Isolation and Quarantine Megan Main earlier said a specific pregnancy support category was not needed, as it could be covered by other exceptions.
An MBIE spokesperson would not say whether they were considering making pregnancy a specific emergency MIQ category.