Paea Vehikite and his wife Kilisitina say they will not give up the fight to allow him to stay in New Zealand lawfully. Photo / Supplied
Paea Vehikite and his wife Kilisitina say they will not give up the fight to allow him to stay in New Zealand lawfully. Photo / Supplied
Tearful pleas from the wife of a Tongan overstayer who has lived illegally in Rotorua for 16 years have failed to prevent him being deported.
Paea Vehikite’s family said he is being deported to Tonga today.
But a judge has urged them not to give up their fight to keephim in New Zealand.
It comes after Immigration New Zealand successfully sought a warrant of commitment in the Rotorua District Court last month, allowing Vehikite, 48, to be detained for deportation.
He arrived in New Zealand in May 2009 and failed to get a visa.
Judge John Bergseng said Immigration NZ contacted Vehikite on March 17 this year and he was allowed to apply for a visa as a special case under Section 61 of the Immigration Act.
Given Vehikite cannot speak English, communication was made through his wife Kilisitina.
Judge Bergseng said Vehikite’s Section 61 application was declined on April 7, but he did not leave New Zealand within 14 days as required.
Police and immigration officials found him at the rear of his Rotorua property on June 30.
Kilisitina Vehikite addressed Judge Bergseng in court, saying she was sorry for “lying” and telling officials at her door her husband wasn’t home.
She said she wasn’t aware police were at the rear of her home.
“I am sorry, when they come on the 30th, I was lying to the immigration people and the police. I was scared.”
She said she sought help to apply for her husband’s visa from someone she thought was an immigration agent in Auckland. However, after spending what she said was a lot of money, they discovered the agent wasn’t qualified and their application was declined.
She said the ordeal had been difficult on her poor health.
“I do apologise for lying. I was just trying for my husband to stay here. My health is not good and he is a good person.”
More than 20 members of the Tongan community attended the Rotorua Courthouse for the hearing. Photo / NZME
Letters of support were handed to the judge and a packed gallery of more than 20 members of the Tongan community attended the court hearing in support.
“My love and everything I do for him, it never stops,” Vehikite’s wife told Judge Bergseng through tears.
“If he goes to Tonga, I will go to Tonga and see him and still trying. I’m so sorry. I do ask you please give Paea a chance.”
Judge Bergseng said under the Immigration Act, he had “absolutely no discretion” and no choice but to grant the warrant of commitment.
“I simply do not have any power to allow Mr Vehikite to remain in New Zealand. That has to lie with the Minister of Immigration.”
Judge Bergseng noted the support of Vehikite’s wife and the Tongan community contingent.
He said he had been handed several documents, in particular from the Rotorua Tongan Community chairman who spoke of the positive contribution the Vehikites made to the Tongan and the wider Rotorua communities.
Paea Vehikite has to return to Tonga after living 16 years illegally in New Zealand. Photo / File
“I do so recognising that Mr Vehikite has a lot of support. In some ways it is clear he has been let down by others who have not done the right thing by him when proper advice was earlier sought,” Judge Bergseng said.
He said Vehikite would be taken to Spring Hill Prison and arrangements would be made for him to be deported to Tonga.
“I am no expert in immigration matters but if you have resources and can get in contact with people who have an understanding of this, can I suggest you don’t give up yet. I don’t know what you can or can’t do but it is worth trying whatever you can,” Judge Bergseng said.
Kilisitina Vehikite told the Rotorua Daily Post yesterday her husband was to be deported today.
She said she would go to Tonga tomorrow for two weeks because she missed her husband but would need to return to New Zealand because of her health issues.
She said they would not give up the fight to try to allow her husband to stay in New Zealand lawfully.
Immigration New Zealand could not comment on specific cases but a spokesperson told the Rotorua Daily Post it used a range of tools to tackle non-compliance.
The spokesperson said individual cases were prioritised based on the potential risk.
Staff then considered each case based on the facts, with regulatory action taken in line with the legislation.
They said the overall approach was to encourage people to comply with the law and enforcement was only used when other tools weren’t appropriate.
The latest available figures from December 2017 showed there were about 14,000 overstayers in New Zealand. The spokesperson said work was under way to get updated figures within the next 12 months.
Kelly Makiha is a senior journalist who has reported for the Rotorua Daily Post for more than 25 years, covering mainly police, court, human interest and social issues.
