I know some people view Barbara Dreaver, One News Pacific Correspondent, as a bleeding heart liberal. I don’t. She is an accomplished reporter with strong links to many Pacific Island nations and to the Pacifica community here in New Zealand who tells it how it is from a Pacifica perspective.
Of the estimated 10,000 ‘over-stayers’ in the country about half are from Samoa or Tonga. Many of you will have seen the interview Dreaver had with a Tongan over-stayer where he said that if he caught Covid-19 he would not seek medical help least he was identified as an over-stayer but rather, that he would rely on traditional Tongan medicine and his faith in God to see him through. That is chilling. It would certainly accelerate the spread of the virus and neuter contact tracing.
I note that some Pacific Island leaders have called upon the government to grant block amnesty to all over-stayers as a means of enticing them to seek professional help should they contact the virus. I guess you might argue that desperate times beget desperate measures and that the public health concern must be paramount. It would be a big call by government (any government) and would involve an element of political risk just seven weeks out from the election. Damned if you do and a ticking time-bomb if if you don’t.
Reaction/thoughts?
No Minister 
Barbara Dreaver was kicked out of Fiji because she was caught creating fake news stories to discredit the government of Commodore Bainimarma.
You can’t believe a word she writes.
No sex abuse in Fifji’s catholic churches? Yeah, right.
You and Georgie Pell, eh Adolf?
GF
Probably as much as there was in the North Canterbury Boy Scouts a couple of decades ago.
So that’s the Catholic defence? The Scouts were doing it, so we thought we would too.
Oddly, both are religious.
Once again you show how deeply you are immersed in your 60’s worldview.
The Scouts are about as religious these days as your average Lefty, which is to say that while members might be religious in private there’s fuck all talk, symbols or practice of it in everyday Scouting clubs here in NZ and around the world.
At least with regard to the locals they have any number of Asian kids who don’t come from a Christian background so don’t want to switch them off. In fact I think the latest revisions in the NZ club material has removed much of the traditional stuff about country, god, etc.
Back! Back to your holographic chamber.
@ Tom Hunter
Hmm. Sounds pretty much like St Kentigerns, Kings and a number of ostensibly Protestant schools with too much money and popularity for their own good! At least the left footers are more faithful to their foundational purpose.
Oh sure. Same with the Catholic schools. Most of the parents I knew with kids in those schools had them their only for the social contacts to be built, and they weren’t Catholic anyway in many cases.
Chilling?,
Are you serious?
Only tyrannies seek to control human beings to the extent that is required to pevent the spread of the common cold which is what COVID-19 is regardless of all the babble to the contrary
And even the most tyranical regime in the history of mankind is probably doomed to fail at that.
You know what is really chilling? The number of New Zealanders who have been scared into uncritically submitting to BIG GOVERNMENT dictats with unquestioning obediance
Well, Andrei, if they didn’t obey, no doubt they’s be invited in for a “nice cup of tea and a chat”.
New Zealand still has a functioning opposition, its leaders are freely roaming the streets. And even you seem to prefer it to Putin’s Prison.
Thank you Andrei. It’s nice to know there are still people who haven’t fallen for the propaganda.
Whatever rings your bell Andrei. So can I take it you will be refusing to wear a mask traveling on public transport. Good luck with flying Air NZ. Meanwhile back in the real world …. Still, with Ross Meurant looking to import the ‘Sputnik’ vaccine we can all now relax. Hold on, yesterday Russia was reporting 4,829 new cases and 110 new deaths. Real effective that vaccine.
This really “damned if you do etc”. Since we do not appear to be deporting any Pacific overstayers anyway, unless they need dialysis, then perhaps the pragmatic solution is to grant them residence. Just PI? I suppose the argument applies to all illegal residents and that would open a real flood. Quite why the dawn raids now evoke the Stasi and jackboots I do not understand. Perhaps that’s only for the commentariat and for the rest of the population “dawn raids” are just enforcing the law. The PM has lots of political capital, she might spend some on this issue c/w frowny face and caring tilt of head?
From what I have read and have heard of those who allegedly suffered it, “Dawn Raids” is now a blanket-term, especially in the Island communities, that also covered the policing abuse of approaching Pacific Islanders on the street and, for no other reason than they were Pacific Islanders (ie without lawful probable cause), demanding they provide proof on the spot of their residency status. And off to the police station if they couldn’t.
It’s estimated that there are 5000 PI over-stayers in Auckland alone.
When you have gone over you visa and overstay you have to pay for your own health costs.
It’s self interest that drives their will to avoid testing and rely on self treatment.
Veteran 5000 people die each and every day in the Russian Federation. If 110 of them are ascribed to COVID-19 deaths it becomes a matter of context – how old were these people, what was their state of health. If they were old and sick to start with it becomes a big so what
Big numbers devoid of context are useful in misleading the gulliable by polticians filled with deceit but for those few of us who can think for ourelves we need answers those questions before we surrender our feedoms. And we are being misled of this COVID thing make no mistake about it
If you look into it deeply the people whose deaths are ascribed to COVID-19 are almost exclusively people who have significant health issues to begin with and a very low life expectancy in the normal couse of events
Veteran 5000 people die each and every day in the Russian Federation. If 4110 of them are ascribed to poison it becomes a matter of context – what were their politics, what was the poison?
FIFY.
If you look into it deeply the people whose deaths are ascribed to COVID-19 are almost exclusively people who have significant health issues to begin with and a very low life expectancy in the normal couse of events
None of whom would have died of the common cold which is NOT what COVID-19 is regardless of all the babble from the ignorant.
How do you know this Gustavo Frink?
You don’t! You just pulled that statement out of your arse.
It is only very recently that the ability to sequence corona viruses has come about – if those techniques were not available people would look at the common symptoms and identify a common cold. They might look at the putative causative agent under an electron microscope and recognize a corona virus
Corona viruses are ubiquitous and mutate quickly – with sequencing scientists are already identifying new variants of COVID-19 that have arisen since the first identification late last year
Indeed it is reported there are now cases of people acquiring coronavirus infections from these new variants having seen off one of the original strains.
Unsurprising if these observations are validated, unsurprising and predictable
That would be natural selection doing its thing…
I could say more but you’re like a primative observing a solar eclipse for the first time and allowing the shamans to convince you they can fix it if only you do as they say
“let fuck your virgin daughter and I’ll restore the sun” sort of thing…
Max … thank you for your comment … the only one to address the issue.
Your fault veteran. You should have deleted adolt’s first thread jacking post
You would seem to not know the difference between a thread jack and venereal disease.
Trust Adolf to be the first recorded case of VD acquired from JAQing.
74 percent of the current cluster are PI. Many have to go into isolation centres to break the transmission because they are not compiling with Covid practice
Before kava parties now risky underground church services.
Wear a mask and wash hands regularily when in contact with Auckland PIs.
Quidam … for better or worse I am hesitant to delete the contributions of my fellow co-bloggers. Adolf is entitled to his opinion. I disagree.
As to the issue at hand …. amnesty … your opinion?
Ah, so it’s more than a Covid test. A range of services says it all.
https://asiapacificreport.nz/2020/05/02/kaniva-news-amnesty-time-for-nz-overstayers-to-help-check-virus-spread/