This refugee thing.
#1
This refugee thing.
I'm so glad we live in a country so remote and forgotten at times. After looking at the spectrum of possible solutions and ideas all I can say is that there are no nice or easy choices.
Glad we aren't in a position where we'd have to make any choices on this.
Glad we aren't in a position where we'd have to make any choices on this.
#2
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Joined: Jul 2013
Location: Christchurch
Posts: 570
Re: This refugee thing.
Well, we are and we do. I think NZ should take in refugees if we are able to and there was an article last night about a refugee centre in Mangere.
It's funny in a way, even as an expat migrant it took me a lot of time, effort and money to get out my home country and to another one. Refugees face even more challenges than I ever did with far fewer resources and far more imminent threats. I admire them for having the resourcefulness to survive up to the point they have. As we all know there are times when we feel homesick and want to go back, at least we have the choice to. It must be a terrible thing to be forced to leave your home.
It's funny in a way, even as an expat migrant it took me a lot of time, effort and money to get out my home country and to another one. Refugees face even more challenges than I ever did with far fewer resources and far more imminent threats. I admire them for having the resourcefulness to survive up to the point they have. As we all know there are times when we feel homesick and want to go back, at least we have the choice to. It must be a terrible thing to be forced to leave your home.
#4
Lost in BE Cyberspace
Joined: Jun 2005
Location: In a large village called Auckland
Posts: 5,249
Re: This refugee thing.
Thenkfully Nu Zullund ummugrashun have put out thus sulf hulp vudeo thut shuld hulp wuth the suttling un process.
Refugee resettlement video showcases relaxed Kiwi lifestyle | Stuff.co.nz
All you need to know and more about the Kiwi lifestyle of BBQs, Smoko and going out on the puss.
Refugee resettlement video showcases relaxed Kiwi lifestyle | Stuff.co.nz
All you need to know and more about the Kiwi lifestyle of BBQs, Smoko and going out on the puss.
#5
Re: This refugee thing.
That is the refugee transit centre. The only one.
NZ takes around 700/750 refugee families a year. Most all are from Myanmar or Bhutan. They do not come direct into NZ.
Those from Myanmar spend time in tenement housing in Malaysia and those from Bhutan will have been in refugee camps in Nepal. Nepal ( China) is currently trying to close those down.
Reps from NZIS go out to the refugees to start the resettlement process. Those refugees then have a mandatory 6 week stay at Mangere before they arrive to their final destinations. One of 7 areas . One of those areas being Nelson. By this time they will be full NZ residents.
Apparently a small increase may be on the cards. Whether they would be those of sub-sahara origin or ME is not known.
NZ takes around 700/750 refugee families a year. Most all are from Myanmar or Bhutan. They do not come direct into NZ.
Those from Myanmar spend time in tenement housing in Malaysia and those from Bhutan will have been in refugee camps in Nepal. Nepal ( China) is currently trying to close those down.
Reps from NZIS go out to the refugees to start the resettlement process. Those refugees then have a mandatory 6 week stay at Mangere before they arrive to their final destinations. One of 7 areas . One of those areas being Nelson. By this time they will be full NZ residents.
Apparently a small increase may be on the cards. Whether they would be those of sub-sahara origin or ME is not known.
#6
Re: This refugee thing.
Hopefully not, as recent events have shown there is sometimes a real 'clash of cultures' between the Islamic world and western societies. It would be very unfair to burden Western societies with these problems.
#7
Re: This refugee thing.
I hope I'm misunderstanding but are you saying that everyone from an Islamic based country should be kept out of the Christian based western countries and that western countries shouldn't help when there's a humanitarian crisis in Islamic countries that forces peopel to flee for their lives?
#8
Re: This refugee thing.
Well we shouldn’t force people to live in a Western country. There will be people for who the liberal nature of wester society will be very confronting and they may not adjust well to societal norms.
If states can be made to look powerless by events governments will not be able to continue to extend such humanitarian efforts. Liberal governments cannot afford for people to close rank, lose trust or act out of fear. Europe needs young workers but cultural conflict may be a price too high for many countries.
ETA: Luckily though they aren't on our doorstep so we don't have to make tough choices.
If states can be made to look powerless by events governments will not be able to continue to extend such humanitarian efforts. Liberal governments cannot afford for people to close rank, lose trust or act out of fear. Europe needs young workers but cultural conflict may be a price too high for many countries.
ETA: Luckily though they aren't on our doorstep so we don't have to make tough choices.
#9
Re: This refugee thing.
For some time now Hamilton has been where refugees from Afghanistan have been being settled and we have a growing Afghan community here that is on the whole well integrated. I have been volunteering with the Red Cross for over a year helping a particular family get settled and established here. The quota refugees aren't forced to come to NZ and also are carefully screened to ensure they are likely to settle and adapt to life in NZ, bearing in mind that integration rather than assimilation is the aim. While the family I work with are non-Western Muslims they have embraced their new home country and, just like us, as immigrants have kept some of their cultural traditions and values and adopted some Kiwi ones also, especially the little kids
My family and their family have enjoyed the cultural exchange that has resulted from getting to know them; all our lives are richer for it.
Mangere is the settlement centre where all quota refugees (but not those who seek asylum when on NZ soil) spend six weeks having an orientation to NZ society that includes basic English, sorting any immediate health issues, etc, etc. It's a great system; I wish there was the political will to at least double the quota (we take very very few refugees per capita compared to other OECD countries - don't let the stats about the quota confuse you) because there is the capacity and the will among those who support refugees.
My family and their family have enjoyed the cultural exchange that has resulted from getting to know them; all our lives are richer for it.
Mangere is the settlement centre where all quota refugees (but not those who seek asylum when on NZ soil) spend six weeks having an orientation to NZ society that includes basic English, sorting any immediate health issues, etc, etc. It's a great system; I wish there was the political will to at least double the quota (we take very very few refugees per capita compared to other OECD countries - don't let the stats about the quota confuse you) because there is the capacity and the will among those who support refugees.
Last edited by bourbon-biscuit; Jan 12th 2016 at 1:08 am.
#10
Re: This refugee thing.
I think a new centre is to open in Dunedin so maybe the quota will be increased.
#11
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Joined: Nov 2013
Posts: 450
Re: This refugee thing.
Good on you Bourbon Biscuit. If we were all like you we would be building a lot of bridges and helping to make the world a better place.
#12
Re: This refugee thing.
So much for the argument Syrians could replace an aging German workforce:
Ludger Woessmann, a professor of economics at the University of Munich, tells German magazine Zeit 65 percent of Syrian refugees fail to meet international standards on basic reading and writing skills. Just 10 percent of the one million arrivals in the country this year have a college degree, which may force unemployment rates and demand for social welfare to rapidly go up.
#13
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Joined: Jan 2016
Location: Suffolk
Posts: 743
Re: This refugee thing.
On the subject of non-Christian immigration:
I am assuming that the Asian migrants from India and near regions and from China and near regions do not have to pass a Christianity test before they are accepted?
In this case any attempt to equate Muslims with unsuitable immigration is a little short sighted.
I am assuming that the Asian migrants from India and near regions and from China and near regions do not have to pass a Christianity test before they are accepted?
In this case any attempt to equate Muslims with unsuitable immigration is a little short sighted.
#14
Re: This refugee thing.
On the subject of non-Christian immigration:
I am assuming that the Asian migrants from India and near regions and from China and near regions do not have to pass a Christianity test before they are accepted?
In this case any attempt to equate Muslims with unsuitable immigration is a little short sighted.
I am assuming that the Asian migrants from India and near regions and from China and near regions do not have to pass a Christianity test before they are accepted?
In this case any attempt to equate Muslims with unsuitable immigration is a little short sighted.
#15
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Joined: Jan 2016
Location: Suffolk
Posts: 743
Re: This refugee thing.
Just to note that (according to the statistics for the Parent Category draw) the immigration is consistently around 45% Chinese and the percentage of Indian migrants is now generally second place, with Brits and South Africans reducing in numbers.
Those from North Africa and the Middle East don't really seem to be in significant numbers.
I would wonder more if NZ in the future is going to be increasingly steered by Chinese culture.
I am not saying this is either a good or bad thing but being multi-cultural means that your long term views are modified by migrants once they achieve a certain percentage of the population.
Those from North Africa and the Middle East don't really seem to be in significant numbers.
I would wonder more if NZ in the future is going to be increasingly steered by Chinese culture.
I am not saying this is either a good or bad thing but being multi-cultural means that your long term views are modified by migrants once they achieve a certain percentage of the population.