King: Immigration policy is breaking hearts
Northland MP Matt King put a human face to Immigration NZ decisions when he addressed the House last week, comparing the treatment of Kaitaia assistant health care assistant Juliet Garcia, who does not qualify for residency, and others, with the minister of immigration’s decision not to deport convicted drug smuggler Karel Sroubek.
“This gangster, this criminal gangster, is a nasty piece of work, and I’ve met a few of them in my time — I’ve arrested a few,” the former police officer said.
“It made me think about the people and some of the constituents who have come into my office. I thought of a Filipino woman called Juliet Garcia — 11 years in New Zealand, works at the Switzer rest home. She’s just shy of her residency points because they won’t take into account a couple of years of her work experience in New Zealand, so she’s been told that she can’t get residency.
“So they’ve advertised her position in preparation that she’s going to be kicked out of the country, and they’ve had no applicants for two years — they cannot replace her. The minister has the authority to grant a waiver to let her stay in the country.
“There are an estimated 3000 Juliet Garcias in this country, and aged care is in crisis, so I would imagine that she would be a great case to grant a waiver.
“I have the English woman, a sole child, who came here as a resident. Her mother has died and her father is alone in England. He has the means to come out here and the means to support himself. He is her only surviving relative . . . and she wants him to come out and live in New Zealand with her in her house, and he can support himself.
“He’s a little bit old, and they won’t give him a waiver. He can’t get residency. He doesn’t qualify in any categories, but they can let him in. This is heart-breaking stuff.
“We’ve got a Fijian-Indian farm manager. He’s been here eight years. His employer values him and is desperate for him to stay. He’s paid international fees for his son to go through university here. He’s bought his own house. He is two years over the age limit.
“The minister has the ability to give him an age waiver to allow him to apply for residency, but they refuse to intervene.
“We’ve got South African people wanting to escape South Africa because of the violent crime. The government’s seizing their land without compensation, and they want to get out of that country. They have good grounds.
“One of them was a woman who was shot eight times by intruders in her home while her husband was away. They ransacked the house and left her for dead, but her 3-year-old son, who she was able to lift out a window, ran a kilometre down the road to raise help.
“Stories like this are genuine. They’re happening right now in South Africa, and we’re turning a blind eye. We have the ability to accept these people,” Mr King said.
“I’ve got people who come here on visitor visas from South Africa looking to make New Zealand their home, professional people — doctors, teachers, chefs, engineers — but they can’t get residency. It’s heartbreaking stuff. I see it every day.
“I understand that we can’t open the floodgates and let these people in willy nilly, but we certainly can kick an oxygen-thief of a Czech gangster out of this country. Hell, I’d do that job for free.”