New Zealand citizen has visa cancelled by immigration minister

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Created on Monday, 09 January 2012 18:06

Written by Editorial staff

A New Zealand man has had his visa cancelled by the Australian minister for immigration after he successfully won a case to stay in the country.

It has been reported that 26-year-old Hayden Harlem Tewao faced the Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT) on May 18 2011, after he was involved in a crime that saw him serve a three year sentence.

As part of the normal procedures in the judicial system, Tewao was likely to face deportation unless he passed inspection by the tribunal.

In the case notes, senior member at the AAT Narelle Bell found that the man had developed a peaceful personality despite being "born into a family governed by one of the gangs that trouble some parts of New Zealand".

Bell described Tewao as a "huge man" with fists that resembled "demolition balls" - standing at 2.1 metres and weighing just over 200 kilograms.

But for all his sheer size and strength, the senior member found that he was "a gentle man" and that his ties to family members here in Australia where substantial and beneficial - both to the man himself and to those around him.

On reviewing the evidence gathered by Tewao's representatives, Bell decided that the defendant met the criteria needed to have his migration visa kept in place.

Bell asserted: "I find there is a low risk to the protection of the Australian community were Mr Tewao to remain in Australia.

"I find that Mr Tewao's ties to Australia are not accurately reflected by the length of time he was resident here before he first offended and that the presence now of most members of his immediate family means that his ties to Australia are strong."

However, the senior member was careful to include the note that her decision could be overturned by the minister of immigration, as the defendant did not pass the character test set out in the Migration Act 1985.

Approximately four months later this is exactly what happened, with Chris Bowen making the decision to cancel the New Zealand man's visa on September 13 2011, finding that he represented "an unacceptable risk of harm to the Australian community".

Bowen asserted: "After considering relevant information, I cannot be satisfied that the risk of further offending by Mr Tewao is negligible and accordingly I found that the cancellation of Mr Tewao’s visa is in the national interest."

However, the defendant's supporters found issue with the ministers reasoning, noting that he described the New Zealand citizen as "an exceptionally large man" and putting forth the argument that his "gigantism" did not have any relevance to the case.

In the end the Federal Court upheld the decision of the immigration minister on December 23 2011 - serving as a powerful reminder that the decisions of the tribunal are not necessarily final.