Kiwis denied virus welfare
Residents claim Anzac spirit dying
TRAPPED in Australia and made to feel like second-class citizens, Gold Coast Kiwis say it appears the long-treasured Anzac spirit is dying.
“We pay our tax and we work hard,” Kylie Rewi says. “We’re good people who love this country and living here. It’s just a shame the Goverment doesn’t care for us as our Kiwi government cares for Aussies living in New Zealand.”
The Pacific Pines cafe worker started an application online for Centrelink assistance and it came up with a message saying she didn’t meet the criteria “as I am a non-protected special category visa holder and I haven’t been in Australia longer than 10 years. I’ve been here seven”. She is one of thousands of NZ citizens in the Gold Coast unable to access welfare benefits as the COVID-19 pandemic triggers mass unemployment.
Unable to return home because New Zealand is in shutdown, Kiwis feel they’ve been abandoned by everyone, with the Ministry of Social Development telling the Bulletin it was “unable to provide assistance to New Zealanders living in Australia”.
A spokesperson for Minister of Families and Social Services Anne Ruston said “welfare assistance may be available to some other temporary visa holders if they face significant financial hardship under the Special Benefit payment”.
“New Zealand citizens in Australia on a Special Category Visa (subclass 444) may have access a range of payments, depending on their circumstances.”
Yet a spokesman for New Zealand’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade confirmed that “Australians resident in New Zealand are eligible for the Government’s COVID-19 support measures” regardless of visa status.
Jane Morris said she was sick of not being treated with respect as a New Zealander, particularly considering the way Aussies were taken care of “back home”.
“It astounds me that despite the worldwide pandemic situation we find ourselves in, we Kiwis still are made to feel like second-class citizens, despite being hardworking taxpayers. So much for that Anzac spirit.”
Larah Little said Centrelink told her husband he would receive nothing as he’d been in the country for only nine years and that the Newstart allowance was only available for people who have been here for 10 years or more.
“She suggested drawing down from his super. I asked if there was any leniency and she said as far as she had been told, no,” she said.
A New Zealand Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade spokesman said: “We are discussing the situation of New Zealanders in Australia with the Australian Government.
“There are strong public health reasons for supporting New Zealanders in Australia who are sick or unable to work because of COVID-19.”