Ng Han Guan/AP
Protests erupted across China in recent weeks, calling for the end of lockdowns and the zero-Covid strategy.
An Auckland-based couple have been ordered to return to China despite claiming it would cause them harm due to the country’s “draconian” Covid-19 lockdown measures.
The couple, aged in their 30s and 40s, arrived in New Zealand on visitor visas in 2019. They eventually gained working visas and worked for a restaurant.
The couple applied for refugee and protected person status, but were declined, according to a recently-released decision from the Immigration and Protection Tribunal.
In May 2022, an urgent appeal was filed due to a “serious issue” regarding the welfare of their daughter, who lives in China with grandparents.
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The pair argued it would be unduly harsh to deport them to China, as they would be forced to quarantine at a government facility as part of its zero-Covid strategy.
While much of the world is adjusting to life with Covid-19, the Chinese government is still attempting to stamp out the virus with strict controls, including lockdowns, travel bans and enforced coronavirus testing.
Kevin Frayer/Getty Images
Epidemic control workers in an area where some Chinese communities are under lockdown on November 29.
“Draconian lockdown measures have been imposed since March 2022 which have significantly impeded people’s access to healthcare, food, and other life necessities. An unknown number of people have died after being denied medical treatment for their non-Covid-19 related illness,” the tribunal decision read.
Protests erupted across China in recent weeks, calling for the end of lockdowns and the zero-Covid strategy.
The couple said they felt safe and free in New Zealand, their lawyer told the tribunal.
“It would be unjust or unduly harsh to deport the appellants as deportation will result in them being detained in quarantine facilities, together or separately, and such detention may extend beyond any declared deadline.”
It was also pointed out that since February, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade (MFAT) advised New Zealanders not to travel to China.
The tribunal accepted the lockdowns in China would be difficult for the couple, however it did not believe this amounted to exceptional circumstances of a humanitarian nature.
“It is not established that the appellants would be denied access to the necessities of life, and neither do they have any identified health vulnerabilities that may be affected by compromised access to medical care as a result of lockdown.”
THOMAS MANCH
PM Jacinda Ardern discusses her meeting with China’s Xi Jinping on the sidelines of the Apec forum in Thailand.
While the couple had an emotional connection with New Zealand and their community, their primary focus was their daughter and family in China.
Additionally, the couple wished to visit their daughter, however this would result in them being forced to quarantine in a government facility anyway.
Due to the couple being unsuccessful in their appeal, they would be required to leave New Zealand within 28 days of the tribunal decision.
However, the tribunal granted them work visas for three months, so they could legally remain and work in New Zealand while they made travel and quarantine arrangements in China.
