Immigration Laws: May, 1996 - Number #22

The New Zealand First Party is gaining strength in opinion polls, mostly by portraying the 125,000 Asian immigrants in the country of 3.5 million as "too rich" and persons who "sponge" off the local economy by leaving their families in New Zealand, while they commute to jobs in Taiwan. Asians are about 60 percent of New Zealand's immigrants.

The First Party, headed by a Maori, calls for a limit of 10,000 immigrants per year and a four-year probation period for all immigrants during which they could own a maximum 25 percent of any New Zealand company. The First Party's campaign has been blamed for three attacks on Asian immigrant families in the past few months.

In response to the increasing anti-immigrant sentiment, a group of mostly Asians launched a new political party of April 22. The Ethnic Minority Party of New Zealand hopes to give a political voice to ethnic minorities. Asians account for 3.5 percent of New Zealand's population. The new party plans to form a coalition with other small parties to reach the five percent threshold needed to gain representation in the Parliament.

Some see the creation of a racially based party as detrimental to race relations in New Zealand.

Australian Immigration Minister Paul Ruddock announced plans in March 1996 to encourage new immigrants to bypass Sydney and Melbourne for South Australia, Tasmania and the Northern Territory. Some 80,000 immigrants are expected in 1996, mostly from Hong Kong, China, Vietnam, the Philippines and India.

Voters in New South Wales and Queensland re-elected two candidates who want to eliminate special preference for Aborigines. Their re-election reflects a growing sentiment, especially among the poorer whites, that the Aborigines, who have received protections from the government, are on the "gravy train."

The new coalition plans to also review the present immigration policy, with a proposal to cut welfare to new immigrants who are unemployed.

Ken Coates, "Racial Row Leads Asians to Seek Own Political Voice," Inter Press Service, April 29, 1996. Matthew Brockett, "NZ's Asian political party fuels race debate," Reuters, April 22, 1996. Surinder Singh, "Racial issues turned voters against Labor in two states," Straits Times (Singapore), March 6, 1996.

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