Communist made ‘Kiwi’

Press, 12 May 1979, Page 6

Communist made ‘Kiwi’

PA Auckland A British-born Communist, Mr Peter Cross, has won a three-year battle to become a New Zealand citizen. The decision to make Mr Cross “a Kiwi” comes after an apparent change of heart by the Ministetr of Internal Affairs (Mr Highet). In September. 1976, after sitting for a year on an earlier application from Mr Cross. Mr Highet rejected the application without reasons.

Mr Cross, a Korean War veteran, and his wife paid their own fares to New Zealand in 1959. He has three New Zealand-born children and has twice stood for Parliament. He told a reporter at the time of his rejection that the decision seemed political.

He said he had never been unemployed, had never committed a crime, had raised a respectable family, and was paying off a house.

Obviously. being a

Communist makes me a very bad citizen in the Government’s eyes,” he said.

In spite of widespread publicity and complaints by the member of Parliament for New Lynn (Mr J. L. Hunt) Mr Highet refused to justify' his decision.

Last July new regulations came into force, making the Minister give reasons for all cases where citizenship had been refused, except where the

information could be prejudicial to security . Mr Cross, a member of the Socialist Unity Party, decided to reapply under the new rules.

In a letter dated April 2, Mr Cross was informed that his application had been approved. A certificate of citizenship was enclosed.

Mr Cross yesterday thanked those who had publicised and supported his efforts. “Those protests obviously affected the result of this application,” he said.