Thousands of Kiribati people are living in Auckland illegally because climate change has made their homeland almost uninhabitable, a human rights lawyer says.
Michael Kidd represented Kiribati man Ioane Teititoa, who was deported in 2015 after his application for climate change refugee status was declined.
Mr Kidd said he believed the Government’s proposal announced yesterday to introduce a climate change visa was a good idea but the ‘‘devil is in the detail’’.
He wanted the visa to include about 2000 displaced Kiribati people already living in New Zealand.
‘‘If they are prepared to apply it to people already in New Zealand I think it would be great. For example, for the 2000 Kiribati people in Auckland. That’s the scope of the problem,’’ Mr Kidd said.
Mr Teititoa’s case for climate change asylum went international with media coverage, including an offer of a home and job from East Timor’s former president Jose-Ramos Horta.
However, this offer eventually fell through and Mr Teititoa, his wife and three New Zealand-born children were deported to Kiribati.
Yesterday, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said a new climate change category visa might be introduced in New Zealand for Pacific neighbours.
Ms Ardern told CNN International that climate change was one of New Zealand’s biggest international problems and could mean an influx of climate change refugees.
‘‘We need to acknowledge that we are, unless we make dramatic changes, at the front of seeing refugees as a result of climate change so we see a duty of care there,’’ Ms Ardern said.
‘‘We’re looking to ways to build in the responsibility we have on climate change and the way we approach climate change refugees in the future amongst our neighbours.’’
Climate Change Minister James Shaw told RNZ he was looking at a new category visa for people in the Pacific who were displaced by rising sea levels.
