Thursday, November 17, 2016
Anticapitalists Against Trump- NZ socialists speak
AntiCapitalists against Trump- Michael Treen Nadia Filistin Line Lux and Joe Carolan discuss the Trump Presidential victory and what it means for politics in America and elsewhere, on this month's Workers Voice radio show. http://www.planetaudio.org.nz/workersvoice/player
Saturday, November 12, 2016
Tuesday, November 08, 2016
Justice for International Indian Students in New Zealand.
Deportation is a word that sends shivers up most
ordinary people’s spines. Having invested all they own and can find
financially, emotionally and socially, being deported out of a
country that they want to make home temporarily or long term is every
migrant’s worst night mare. Social stigma attached to deportation
is so overpowering that most people fail to consider that the
deportees may be innocent and being victimised.
The issue of deportation orders being handed out
to International Indian students in New Zealand has taken over much
of the media and political arena to some extent in the last few
months. Hundreds of students mainly from Hyderabad and Punjab are
affected by the unfair deportations. Unfair because India based
unscrupulous immigration agents acting on students’ behalf
submitted fraudulent financial documents as evidence for living
expenses to Immigration New Zealand. The agents have been committing
this fraud together with corrupt Indian bank officials. The students
had no knowledge of this fraud. This fraudulent activity has been
revealed in an investigation report publicised in June 2016 by
Immigration New Zealand’s Mumbai Area Office. How is it fair to
punish the students for something they have not done?
Some responsibility must also be taken by the
Private Training Establishments (PTE) in this entire mess. Since
receiving deportation orders the affected students have been almost
abandoned by the PTEs and been referred back to India based agents
who are nowhere to be found. Many have been stopped from attending
classes. New Zealand Qualification Authority’s code requires all
PTEs to comply with Pastoral Care of International Students whereby
the PTEs are responsible for the students’ mental health and
wellbeing.
However, the largest, the most critical and the
most influential responsibility sits with the New Zealand Government.
Let us start with the National government list MPs of Indian origin.
New Zealand has 2 at present that conform to this category. When
requested to intervene on behalf of the affected students, both MPs
have been repeating standardised statements handed down from the
bosses - the matter is in the hand of Minister of Immigration and it
would not be appropriate for them to comment etc. One of the MPs went
as far as comparing the students with fridges imported to New Zealand
from China that are returned to China if they are found to be faulty
on arrival in New Zealand.
The students and their supporters formed a
delegation consisting of representatives of the affected students,
The Catholic Church in NZ, The Anglican Church in NZ, Secretary of NZ
Council of Trade Unions, leading human rights lawyers and members of
civil society. This delegation requested in person meeting with the
Minister of immigration. After consistently making contact with the
Minister’s office for two weeks the delegation’s request was
rejected on the basis that the Minister does not deal with individual
cases. One has to wonder at the ability of NZ government officials to
grasp basic information. Hundreds of students are affected by unfair
deportations and the delegation had clearly stated in their request
that the aim of the meeting was to seek amnesty for all affected.
Further to this some cabinet ministers and MPs
have been claiming in media interviews that many students facing
deportation have been involved in criminal activity in New Zealand.
This a very careless and irresponsible statement as this
manufacture’s public’s consent to label all student facing
deportation as criminals. On one hand the government is unwilling to
meet the delegation as ‘it would not be appropriate to discuss
individual cases while they are being investigated.’ And yet on the
other hand the government is happy to label ordinary people as
criminals without providing any evidence. Where is justice?
Help has also been sought from the Indian
Government by requesting the Indian High Commissioner in New Zealand
to intervene. Several tweets have been sent to Sushma Swaraj,
External Affairs Minister. Neither have helped in any way.
The actions taken in support of the affected
students by Migrant Workers Association along with other supporting
organisations (NZ Council of Trade Unions, Unite Union, Socialist
Aotearoa, First Union, The Catholic Church, The Anglican Church, The
Labour Party of NZ, The Green Party of NZ, The Communist League,
Racial Equity Aotearoa, Panthak Vichar Manch, Azad Rang Manch, Radio
Inqilaab) have consisted of public meetings, a petition, 5 protests
in six weeks, extensive media interviews and many awareness raising
sessions. This has now truly turned into a campaign that is gathering
strength very fast. The evidence lies in the fact that the Prime
Minister of New Zealand and many of his MPs are consistently being
asked by media and the public about the student deportations and what
the solution is. 2017 is a general election year in New Zealand and
before that one of the Auckland constituencies with a large Indian
population will have a by-election in December this year. Immigration
is one of the main points for most political parties in the upcoming
elections but even more so for the governing National party.
Most international students are given entry into
New Zealand to study not so useful courses. As a vast majority has to
work to live, they end up in jobs that pay very little and mostly
well below the legal minimum. New Zealand is effectively bringing in
cheap labour under the guise of export education. This government has
to stop treating people like commodities and it has to provide
meaningful opportunities for all in New Zealand. Like most capitalist
countries New Zealand also suffers from concentration of wealth in
the hands of few. The ordinary people need to understand this
phenomena and hold the government accountable, and not the migrants,
for speeding up the killing of an already dying economy.
While the students and their supporters have been
successful in building a strong campaign, the journey is not over
until the demands have been met.
Student demands are very simple and
straightforward:
-
Cancellation of deportation orders
-
Permission to stay in New Zealand to complete education
-
Permission to apply for one year open term work visa upon completion of education
Anu Kaloti
Migrant Workers Association
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