Call for NZ to offer asylum to Papuans deported by Australia

The New Zealand Green Party is calling on the government to give sanctuary to seven West Papuan asylum seekers from Indonesia who Australia flew from Queensland to Papua New Guinea last week.

The West Papuans had arrived in Australia, pleading to be recognised as political refugees from Indonesia.

Canberra has been accused of denying them due process and Green’s MP, Catherine Delahunty, says she has written to the New Zealand foreign minister, Murray McCully, to ask him to take action.

She says firstly Mr McCully should ask the Australian prime minister Tony Abbott to accept these people as political refugees from a neighbouring country that they clearly are.

“Secondly if he will not respond to that, that New Zealand should be prepared to offer asylum to these people because they are in a very unsafe situation. They were being hunted by the Indonesians in their own country and they really do need to be recognised as political refugees immediately rather than sent off to Papua New Guinea which is not even very safe for them.”

New Zealand Green Party MP, Catherine Delahunty

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