Deportation Of Indian

Press, Volume CVI, Issue 31112, 15 July 1966, Page 12

Deportation Of Indian

Sir,—lt is shocking, to my mind, that a New Zealand girl should not be allowed to marry whom she likes and that the Minister of Immigration, after she has married a coloured person, can either force her to leave the country or to separate from her husband. Immigrants who marry New Zealanders are probably most easily assimilated, and are to be welcomed. With immigrants of European stock this is usually recognised by the Immigration Department But some nasty racialist considerations seem to enter when the immigrant has not

the prescribed colour of skin. It is time that our regulations were revised.—Yours, etc., W. ROSENBERG. July 14, 1966. Sir,—“No Colour Bar’s” letter of July 9 struck an answering chord in my family. Indeed, at first we thought it referred to our situation, except that in our case the young man deported was a Fijian Indian. All submissions to have the deportation cancelled were refused, as have applications since for his return. In this case the wife was ill, but even that did not allow any delay in the deportation’s being carried out. I understand there are many of these boys in the same situation, and one feels that these cases should be judged by a committee of ordinary citizens instead of being at the jurisdiction of ‘one man who has complete and final power in these cases. While one appreciates that decisions are made according to the law as it stands, it seems to me that justice could be tempered with mercy where the circumstances show that the person concerned is a good worker and of good character. From my observations there seems a definite prejudice against this particular race. Why?— Yours, etc., PORTIA. July 12, 1966. Sir, —In reply to “Mr Justice,” I submit Mr Persad had no case for hearing. He had known the day his visa ran out over a year ago that his deportation was only a matter of time. He knew when he met his wife he could not stay in this country. He had every chance to do things right. Replying to “Student,” there is no law to keep “lawabiding” couples apart, and I would suggest Mrs Persad join her husband in Fiji. Your correspondents must realise that we cannot have a special law for one Indian only. What about the others that have gone and left families behind? In reply to "Mother” I submit that as Mrs Persad is stated as a “young wife” it would seem that parental consent would have to be given for the marriage to take place. Therefore Mrs Persad’s parents are just as much to blame, as they must have known this would happen. The law of deportation is world-wide.— Yours, etc., JUSTICE. July 14, 1966. [This correspondence is now closed. Ed., ‘The Press.”]