AT LAST : Samoan citizenship supporters celebrating the passage of the immigration bill from the gallery inside NZ Parliament Parliament
By Staff Writer
The fight is still on for the descendants left out of New Zealand citizenship under a new Immigration ACT signed into law this week on Monday.
But the fight is being set aside for now while organisers of the citizenship fight savour the special moment of achievement.
“This has been a difficult fight that took 42 years of trying, and while the Privy Council ruling of 1982 is not fulfilled fully to extend the right to descendants, these are issues we can continue to pursue,”Teleiai Edwin Puni urged the Samoan community and supporters in New Zealand.
Roughly 3,500 Samoans are eligible for NZ citizenship starting at the elderly age of 75 years upwards, under the new immigration law.
The question of whether all will apply is highly uncertain and in many cases seriously doubtful given the elderly age factors.
The New Zealand High Commission Office in Samoa opened for the filing of citizen applications on Tuesday.
An estimate of over 300 people turned up to seek further information about the application process.
Many left with application forms to be filled in for themselves or family members.
The NZ High Commission Office has also offered direct access to application forms online as well as all the necessary identity verification documents needed for processing at govt.nz/citizenship-samoa-pre-1949.
A special church service to give thanks for the new citizenship blessing is being organised for this Friday in Mangere, Auckland for the Samoan community New Zealand.
Invitations to attended have been sent out to NZ’s Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and Samoa’s leader, PM Fiame Naomi Mataafa.
A special invitation is also made to MP Teanau Tuiono who sparked the success of the new turn of events with an immigration bill tabled and passed in the New Zealand Parliament .
The woman who originated the citizenship, Ms. Falemai Lesa, is included in the special invited guest list as well.
The Samoan Government had basically stayed away from the citizenship issue.
Opposition leader ad former Prime Minister, Tuilaepa Sailele Malielegaoi, joined the citizenship fight with a presentation of support, before a NZ Parliament Select Committee.
Tuilaepa has publicly vowed as well to continue the pursuit for descendants citizenship right if the HRPP returns to power.