The Green Party have welcomed the Government’s decision to increase the refugee quota to 1500 annually, meaning more families, women and children fleeing war and persecution will have a safe place to call home. Green Co-leader Marama Davidson, said: “To those who have fled persecution and need a safe place to call home, we want you to know New Zealand welcomes you. “We are a kind, compassionate and safe country. New Zealanders want to help and we can. Green spokesperson...

Hard line Australian immigration Minister Peter Dutton’s move to the backbench should reopen a conversation about refugees on Nauru coming to New Zealand, Green MP Golriz Ghahraman has said today.   “Australia has a unique opportunity now that Peter Dutton has moved to the backbench.   “There are 119 children on Nauru who are languishing in despair. Every day spent in detention is another day robbed of their childhood and a safe and nurturing environment. "These children and their families...

Green Party Immigration spokesperson Golriz Ghahraman has this morning written to the Minister for Immigration, expressing concern about the Ministry’s discriminatory use of immigrants’ personal data.  “We’re very concerned to hear that Immigration NZ is using an algorithm that includes age, gender and ethnicity to determine access to immigration opportunities, including identifying people who are supposedly more likely to commit crimes based on their ethnicity,” said Ms Ghahraman. “We know that the previous government introduced the use of so called...

  Kia ora kotou, nihao, namaste, annyong, kamusta, talofalava, bula, salam alaikum And warm Pacific greetings – on this cold Dunedin morning – to you all. *** It’s a privilege to be representing the Green Party at your AGM. We in the Greens are deeply concerned that the debate about immigration policy in New Zealand has, over the course of time, come to be dominated by populist politicians preaching a xenophobic message in order to gain political advantage. This ugly strain...

This World Refugee Day, the Green Party is committing to welcoming 5,000 refugees per year to New Zealand, to ensure we are doing our bit to help people who have been forced to flee their homes around the world. The Green Party will increase the refugee quota to 4,000 places over six years, provide an additional 1000 places for church and community sponsorship, and create a new humanitarian visa of up to 100 Pacific people displaced by climate change every...

A temporary hold on deportations of nine Indian students is a step in the right direction but the Government urgently needs to implement safeguards to stop further injustices to more international students, the Green Party said today. Immigration NZ has indicated that deportation orders will not be served till February 22 while it considers a request for the students to leave voluntarily. The students India-based education agents used fake documents to secure their study visas in New Zealand, and hundreds...

The Green Party will today seek to introduce a Bill to Parliament that doubles New Zealand’s annual refugee quota to 1500 immediately, and to 2000 from 2018. “In a world racked with uncertainty and turmoil, welcoming a few hundred more refugees is the least we can do to pull our weight,” said Green Party Co-leader James Shaw. “We’re suggesting a small law change, but it will make a massive difference to people whose lives are affected by conflict and persecution....

The Minister for Immigration’s refusal to show compassion to Indian students affected by visa fraud is further evidence of National’s unfair immigration system, Green Party immigration spokesperson Denise Roche said today. Nine Indian students now face deportation after their request to stay in the country was turned down by the Government. “Minister Woodhouse is refusing to help these students, but he and his National Party colleagues are happy to speed up immigration arrangements for Trump-supporting billionaires like Peter Thiel. This...

The Green Party in government would double New Zealand’s refugee quota as a matter of priority. “We’ll double the refugee quota at our first Cabinet meeting,” said Green Party Co-leader James Shaw. “While Bill English stays quiet about what’s going on in the USA, we want to make it clear that when the Green Party is in government, New Zealand will be a counterweight to Donald Trump’s bigotry. “Bill English needs to hurry up and make his position clear on...

The Green Party is calling on the Prime Minister Bill English to condemn Donald Trump’s racist law change to ban people from Muslim countries entering the United States. “France and Germany have condemned Trump’s Muslim ban, and Canada has said it is open to those who need refuge. Sadly, New Zealand is missing from this conversation and looks weak by not standing up,” said Green Party immigration spokesperson Denise Roche. “New Zealand has stood up for what’s right in the...