November 09, 2022
Calls to waiver visa for Pacific nations
The Minister for Pacific Peoples, Aupito William Sio, wants immigration officials to look at how they are managing visitors from Pacific island nations.
The Green Party is calling for Pacific nations to be added to the visa waiver list, after it emerged that half of all visitor applications denied by immigration officials were Pasifika.
Mr Sio says he’s unhappy with the situation.
“I’ve always believed that the Pacific needs to be treated differently on the basis that our foundational principles for engagement are whanaungatanga, manaakitanga, kaitiakitanga, and I’m asking for officials to dig deep to fully understand the depth of meaning of these words and how they can be applied in this region,” Minister Sio says.
Māori Development Minister Willie Jackson and Greens co-leader Marama Davidson are also backing the extension of visa waivers to Pasifika.