VisionNZ campaign manager Jevan Goulter, has called out Jacinda Ardern for her recent backtrack over immigration policy, saying that, “Immigrants in our country have more power than citizens.”
Goulter added that Indians have a ‘bloody cheek’ to protest about those policies in the first place.
“This is the group of people that have benefited off our immigration system more than any other culture or people.”
The speed of PM Ardern's reaction demonstrates the lobbying power of the Indian community.
“We should be hiring these people to come on all our campaigns that Māori have if they’re that effective.
`It was only natural that Goulter would compare the PM's reaction over Ihumātao.
“What did she do? She made an announcement and disappeared on holiday for a week.”
Gouter asked when had the PM acted so fast on other issues.
“How many people had the same reaction, when teachers protest, whenever anybody ever goes for anything, we end up in this long drawn out cycle, of consultation, being ignored.”
In Goulter's own words, Jacinda Ardern was giving migrants the power to define migrant policy.
Former Immigration Minister Tuariki Delamere stated that there was a “lot of misinformation and fake news” about the current immigration policies for Indian couples.
Delamere explained in-depth to Te Ao News the different visas that Immigration NZ (INZ) issues for couples who enter into Indian style arranged marriages.
“The policy says, they will grant you a three month visa, and you are expected to get married within those three months, then once have gotten married, then they’ll grant you a sort of two or three year visa.”
After that, the expectation is that they will apply for residency. The problem comes when Kiwis that have married foreigners, are trying to get residency granted to their foreign born spouses.
A policy, that Delamere says, was put in place to make the “Labour Party and NZ First happy.”
Delamere now runs an immigration consultancy. Delamere has worked with people from all over the world. In some cases, those clients have been Māori, trying to get visas for their spouses. Delamere understands the reason for tightening up on partnership visa criteria but criticises INZ practices and processes. One problem he raised was that the spouses of these tangata whenua, are screened by INZ employees working overseas.
“I find it repugnant, objectionable, that some muppet, incompetent foreigner, in whatever country, who’s never been to NZ, but we’ve employed at minimum wages (not NZ minimum but that country's minimum wages) to process the applications for the partners of NZ citizens.”
Delamere confessed that he could not stop this practice when he was minister. It did not come to his attention until his tenure was almost complete. Delamere had a suggestion on how INZ could close the loopholes in their policies.
“Sit down with people at the coalface, who have credibility, who have knowledge, not just on partnership but on a whole range of things, because believe me, they come up with some doosey, idiotic policies at times.”
Anu Kaloti, speaking for Love Aotearoa Hate Racism, spoke of NZ being part of global village where cultures come together, and how that affects Indians getting married.
“A lot of these people, are in, many cases, second or third generation Kiwi Indians, so they have not known anywhere else to be home.”
Booking their flights home, may not be that easy.