NZ changes priorities to help urgent refugees

The Government has brought forward places set aside for refugees fleeing the crisis in Afghanistan and has increased the total number of spaces for refugees coming from the Middle East.

In response to the mounting refugee crisis in the Middle East, Cabinet recently agreed to increase the proportion of places allocated to resettlement of refugees from the region.

Now 20% of the annual refugee quota – or 300 of the 1500 spots – will go to those fleeing conflict or persecution in the Middle East. This is up from 15%.

Meanwhile, in response to the emergency situation in Afghanistan, the Government has decided to bring forward the first 200 places set aside for Afghan refugees.

The move has been welcomed by a former Afghan refugee, who says it will make life a lot easier for a small group of refugees.

These 200 spots were originally going to be used next quota programme year (starting July 1, 2023), followed by 250 places in 2024, and then 300 places set aside in 2025.

Immigration Minister Michael Wood said Cabinet decided to bring forward the places set aside for Afghan refugees to the current year (starting this month), in order to match the number of refugee referrals being made by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR).

The UN refugee agency had signalled it was going to need more help to resettle the high number of Afghan refugees in the short-term.

The first group of Afghan nationals is expected to arrive this month, subject to flight availability and exit procedures.

Regarding the decision to welcome more people from the Middle East, Wood said it better reflected the resettlement needs in the region and the operational priorities of the UNHCR.

The situation of Syrian refugees remains the largest global refugee crisis.

Since the Syrian conflict began in 2011, nearly 6 million people have fled the country and more than 5.5m have registered as refugees in the neighbouring countries of Lebanon, Turkey, Jordan, Iraq and Egypt.

Abbas Nazari, former refugee and author, said he welcomed the Government’s decision to do more for refugees coming from the Middle East and Afghanistan.

‘‘The increase . . . is a welcome step in the right direction, and takes some of the pain away for many members of the AfghanNew Zealand community, as well as other refugee communities in New Zealand.’’

Nazari said he hoped the Government would find ways to address the backlog of cases and get closure for families who’d been waiting for years.

‘‘Overall, this is fantastic news.’’