‘Do not deport your people, problems’
Ardern warns transtasman relationship is being tested
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern has put the boot into her transtasman counterpart, directly challenging Scott Morrison over Australia’s deportation policies.
“New Zealand and Australia’s relationship is being tested,” she said in a joint press conference yesterday.
Ardern did not mince her words. She directly criticised Morrison — who was standing next to her — over his Government’s policies. Namely, the way Kiwis are treated by the Australian Government as well as Morrison’s deportation policy.
“Do not deport your people and your problems,” Ardern said.
But Ardern’s comments seemingly fell on deaf ears, as Morrison confirmed that Australia would make no changes to its deportation policies.
Australia’s policy was “not directed to any one country or any one nationality whatsoever”, Morrison said.
“It is a statement of Australia’s immigration and border laws that if people that are not citizens commit crimes in Australia, then they have violated the terms of being in this country.”
He said he respected what Ardern had told him and the media but added: “In Australia’s view, that is not in Australia’s national interest to not deport non-citizens who have committed crimes in Australia.”
But Ardern said those policies were having a “corrosive” impact on the two countries’ relationship.
She was highly critical of the way New Zealanders living in Australia were being treated.
“We appreciate that many Kiwis have taken up the opportunity to live and work in Australia — many more than has happened in reverse,” she said.
“Not every Kiwi migrant will be perfect, but evidence shows that the vast majority are providing a net benefit to Australia.”
She pointed out that Kiwis in Australia earn more, are more likely to be employed and pay more tax than their Aussie-born counterparts — they are Australia’s best migrants.
“But rather than them being given security to keep contributing, in return, their rights have been eroded.”
She then moved on to the topic of deportation.
She said Australia was well within its rights to deport individuals who broke its laws — New Zealand did the same, she pointed out.
“But we have a simple request. Send back Kiwis, genuine Kiwis — do not deport your people and your problems.”
She said Australia had deported more than 2000 individuals and amongst them, there would have been “genuine Kiwis” who did have to learn the consequences of their actions.
But she pointed out that amongst those 2000 were individuals who were too young to become criminals.
“They were too young to become patched gang members. Too young to be organised criminals.”
She said the two countries did not want a “race to the bottom” on this issue.
She added that the two leaders remained confident that by continuing to work together, they would find a solution.
“We will own our people. We ask that Australia stop exporting theirs.”
Ahead of their private meeting at Kirribilli House, Morrison and Ardern had thanked each other for the way their two countries had helped in times of tragedy in the past year.
Morrison acknowledged the more than 400 New Zealanders who helped with the bush fires, saying it was a display of “pure Anzac spirit”.
“Everywhere I went I could pick up the accent, I’d say kia ora,” he said.
He mentioned it being nearly a year since the Christchurch mosque attacks and what the countries had been through since with the Whakaari/White Island eruption and now being in the midst of the Covid-19 coronavirus outbreak.
We will own our people. We ask that Australia stop exporting theirs.
Jacinda Ardern
Ardern said it was a chance to have significant discussions that were a level of contact she had with no other leader.
“That’s how it should be — the fact that we can pick up the phone in unfortunate situations has had a very tangible and practical effect for us,” she said.
Ardern told Morrison that their relationship was strong enough to get through those tougher talks.
“We do have some gnarly issues to discuss, but actually we’re strong enough that we can handle when it gets gnarly,” she said.
“We speak frankly, probably more frankly than most international relationships . . . but that’s the nature of who we are.”
The response from Australia to the Whakaari/White Island eruption “spoke to the closeness of the relationship”.
On the bush fires, Ardern said she couldn’t “convey the depth of feeling New Zealanders felt”.
“There was a real sense of proximity, the smoke coming over, New Zealanders saw how devastating it was and they wanted to help and I think they craved the opportunity to send what they could.”