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DEFEND MIGRANTS CIVIL RIGHTS-We are not WInston Peter's Scapegoats- stand up to racist attacks on our health, welfare and democracy.
Speakers-
Anu Kaloti, Migrant Workers Association
Ibrahim Omer, former refugee and Labour Party
Lawrence Xu-Nan Green MP
Mikee Santos, UNIMEG and Workers First Union
Alastair McCylmont, Immigration and Human Rights Lawyer
Chaired by Joe Carolan, Migrant Workers Association Campaign Officer
"The Migrant Workers Association will be reorganising as a solidarity member based activist union to help lead the fight against these attacks on residents economic and civil rights by a NZ First that is increasingly far right and Trumpian" said their campaigns officer Joe Carolan.
"We helped win tens of thousands of migrants these rights with the Pathways to Residency Campaign in 2020-21, and we believe its time to draw a red line to defend our multicultural society from these racist attempts to blame migrants for the economic problems WInston Peters helped cause in all his years in government."
"He is not some anti establishment firebrand. He is the FOreign Minister in Luxon's failed government desperate to stay in parliament, and he wants to import Trump's drastic escalation in racial tension, including ICE style deportation raids, to Aotearoa."
We will rally this Wednesday to build the All Workers United march this Saturday to begin gathering the opposition on the streets. We appeal to all our international organisations, cultural groups, unions and parties to join us defending New Zealand from racist extremism".
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Venue-
Jack Dickey Community Hall,
174 Green Lane West, Greenlane, Auckland 1051
Ahead of the November 2026 general election, NZ First announced a sweeping immigration platform designed to severely restrict the rights of non-citizens. Critics argue these policies strip legal protections and discriminate against tax-paying permanent residents.
The key proposals inciting backlash include:
• Restricting Voting Rights: Party leader Winston Peters proposed a policy to completely ban permanent residents from voting, limiting all voting eligibility strictly to New Zealand citizens.
• Doubling the Citizenship & Permanent Residency Wait Times: The party aims to extend the qualifying period for permanent residence from 2 to 5 years, and double the time required to qualify for citizenship from 5 to 10 years.
• 10-Year Welfare Stand-Down: Non-citizens would be completely barred from receiving jobseeker support, accommodation supplements, or any other government benefits during their first 10 years in the country.
• Abolishing Birthright Citizenship: Citizenship by birth would be restricted exclusively to children born to at least one New Zealand citizen parent.
• Broadened Deportation Controls: Automatic deportation for non-citizens convicted of violent, sexual, or fraudulent crimes, with all fundamental rights of appeal stripped away.
🗣️ Political and Community Backlash
Opposition parties and advocacy groups have heavily criticized these policy rollouts:
• The Alliance Party called the proposals a "cynical electioneering" tactic that introduces "Trumpian, MAGA-style politics into the election campaign". They questioned the fairness of denying basic democratic and welfare rights to tax-paying residents.
• The Green Party and various multicultural leaders have warned that NZ First is using "anti-immigration populism" and xenophobic rhetoric that risks stoking real-world division and discrimination against ethnic minority groups.
• Political Academics have noted that NZ First and the ACT Party appear comfortable capitalizing on polarizing, nationalist views to secure their core voter base ahead of the election
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Event venue
Jack Dickey Hall, 174 Green Ln W, Greenlane, Auckland 1051, Auckland, New Zealand
Tickets
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