Immigration New Zealand operations director Janine Parsons confirmed that they received multiple applications for a transit visa from the woman. Picture: RNZ/SUPPLIED
A woman stuck in the Cook Islands for three years is in a situation which may be tricky for Immigration New Zealand and “too hot to handle” for ministers, a New Zealand lawyer told Radio New Zealand.
Decision-makers have not allowed her to travel to NZ because they doubt her stated intention to transit straight to her home country, which is reportedly in South Asia.
The Cook Islands News said the woman described her forced stay as a psychological nightmare, and she insisted she wanted to return to her family.
Australia had reportedly also refused transit visas.
An immigration lawyer Richard Small, who is not the woman's lawyer, had dealt with similar cases in the realm countries, which include the Cook Islands, Niue and Tokelau.
INZ was likely concerned she would claim asylum when she lands in New Zealand.
“Here, there is a suggestion of a past refugee claim, and that would have triggered all kinds of alarm bells. Unfortunately, those alarm bells can drown out the individual circumstances of the case. And we have had clients that have been stuck in realm countries through exactly these kind of circumstances,” Small told RNZ.
Ways out of the Cook Islands – “unless you have a boat” – were through Australia, New Zealand or to some other Pacific islands.
The woman told Cook Island News she just wanted to return home.
“Living by myself for three years without seeing family is torture. It is a psychological nightmare. I genuinely want to return home. I have no intention to stay in New Zealand.
“My only child is getting married and he wants me to be there (her home country). I have no reasons to want to go to New Zealand or Australia.”
Small, who runs Pacific Legal, said ministers may need to intervene to find a solution to the woman's situation.
“What surprises me is that there hasn't been any discussion of what we call an 'airport visa'. And this is where someone can overnight in typically Auckland airport, where there are 24-hour immigration staff, border staff, not strictly in custody, but supervised, and then just catch the next available flight.
“The person would be literally transiting, not leaving the airside part of the port and not actually entering New Zealand as such.”
Small said that would only apply if the person was already liable for deportation, which we didn't know.
If that was the case, there would be justification to detain or monitor them with an airport visa, he said.
The Green Party said INZ should change its mind.
“That's what I think needs to happen,” said its Pacific Peoples spokesperson, Teanau Tuiono.
“Otherwise, what's going to happen? She's going to stay - there are not many other flights going from the Cook Islands to other countries, like Auckland's basically it. And because the Cook Islands is part of the realm as well, there are responsibilities there.”
INZ operations director Janine Parsons said the agency had received multiple applications for a transit visa from the woman.
“However, these applications were declined as we were not satisfied she has a genuine intention to transit through New Zealand. We are unable to comment further due to privacy concerns.”
The fear she would claim asylum at the airport was probably at the centre of her problem, said Small.
“There is a real problem with false asylum claims alongside real ones. And Immigration New Zealand are especially mindful, as are all the Five Eyes partners [Migration 5], of this risk.
“We are finding also that people who have had claims made behind their backs by advocates. Really in a case like this, a lawyer or an adviser needs to go through the file and try and find out to some degree what's happened.”
It was difficult to know the detailed circumstances, for example whether she could be deported, in which case the Cook Islands might need to provide a police escort.
The woman's situation was not unique, he said, with more migrants travelling to Pacific Islands to work.
“It is strange, and we would have come across these kind of issues about half a dozen times. I don't think it's common at all.”
Asked if those people had returned, he said they had – eventually.
“But eventually can be a very long time. We're talking years.”