Laws: January, 2003 - Number #17

Since 1992, Australia has detained foreigners who arrive illegally by boat and apply for asylum. The policy was adopted by Labor governments and continued by the current Liberal-National Coalition, when it came to power in 1996. When the ship Tampa on August 26, 2001 rescued foreigners headed for Australia by boat, the Coalition government changed its policy- instead of allowing the migrants to land and detain them, the migrants were sent to Pacific island nations such as Narau, where their asylum applications were processed at Australian government expense.

Australia detains foreigners who arrive illegally by boat and without documents, often in isolated detention centers. The cost of detention is A$110 per person a day. Some of those detained rioted in December 2002, attempting to break out of detention centers by setting fires and scuffling with guards. Prime Minister John Howard has said his government will not be deterred from detaining illegal migrants or from diverting boats carrying mainly Afghan and Middle Eastern asylum-seekers to Pacific islands.

If foreigners who arrive illegally are granted protection, Australia provides only temporary protection visas, usually valid for three years. Some 3,500 Afghanis have TPVs, and the government offered them A$2,000 each, or A$10,000 a family, to return to Afghanistan voluntarily. A profile of one couple that returned to Afghanistan emphasized that many returning Afghanis are unable to return to their places of origin; instead, many become internally displaced people living in Kabul. The couple profiled spent most of their adult lives in Iran, and paid $16,000 to smugglers to get to Australia.

Australia granted asylum to a former state lawmaker and Miami-Dade County commissioner in December 2002. Joe Gersten, who had been in Australia since 1993, fled the US after a judge held him in contempt of court for refusing to testify about how his car was stolen. Gersten alleged he would suffer persecution in the US because he had accused political enemies -- including former Attorney General Janet Reno, then the state attorney for Miami-Dade County --of corruption.

Australia stations liaison officers overseas to prevent arriving airline passengers from presenting false documents. This has reduced the number of arriving passengers refused entry, from 1,508 in 2000-01 to 1,193 in 2001-02.

Australia, a country of 20 million with a fertility rate of 1.8, is considering proposals to raise fertility, including offering maternity leave of 14 weeks paid at the minimum wage of A$431 a week.

New Zealand. New Zealand is tightening restrictions in ways that will reduce immigration from Asia. Winston Peters, leader of the opposition New Zealand First party and an ethnic Maori, played on growing public hostility toward Asian immigration to help his party win 13 of the 120 parliamentary seats in July 2002 elections, and has continued to criticize New Zealand immigration policies. An October 2002 poll found that 45 percent of New Zealand residents were opposed to more Asian immigration, up from 29 percent in 2000.

The Association for Migration and Investment is challenging the tighter restrictions in court, arguing that the tougher English-language test is unfair to immigration applicants who applied under previous rules.

New Zealand averaged about 10,000 net migrants a year in the 1990s. New Zealand has an annual target of 45,000 immigrants, but 53,000 arrived in the 12 months ending June 30, 2002; many New Zealand residents emigrate. A former immigration minister has launched a web site to match potential English-speaking immigrants and New Zealand jobs (huntersclub.co.nz).

About seven percent of New Zealand residents are Asians, and New Zealand's economic links with Asia are increasing. Asia takes about 40 percent of New Zealand's exports and provides about 30 percent of incoming tourists. Asians have NZ$7 billion of investments, principally in tourism and forestry, and New Zealand earns more than NZ$1 billion a year from educating tens of thousands of Asians at its high schools and universities. The New Zealand economy expanded by 4.6 percent in 2002, in part because of the arrival of 38,180 migrants, most from China and India.

In 1999, New Zealand offered two new visas: an investor visa, requiring an investment of at least NZ$2 million, and a long-term business visa, designed to attract entrepreneurs. Both programs largely failed: many investors put the NZ$2 million in New Zealand banks, and many business visa holders bought established businesses, for instance, dairies. Economist Berl estimated that foreign-born residents contributed NZ$5 billion in taxes in 1998, and received services costing NZ$3.4 billion.

Colonial law guaranteed New Zealand citizenship to Samoans, but in 1982, Samoans lost their right to New Zealand citizenship. Some 1,100 Samoans a year are permitted to immigrate to New Zealand.

After the success of the Lord of the Rings movies, New Zealand is seeking to market itself as a safe family destination for tourists and a place to make movies. Film NZ, the national film promotion board, says New Zealand offers an English-speaking, largely nonunion work force, and a kaleidoscope of urban and rural landscapes.

Michael Gordon and Meagan Shaw, "PM changes tune on asylum seekers," The Age, December 4, 2002. Mares, Peter. 2002. Borderline: Australia's Response To Refugees And Asylum-Seekers In The Wake Of The Tampa. Unsw Press.