Children wake eagerly to new country

By MARTIN JOHNSTON

After just a few hours' sleep, their first in a New Zealand bed, the Afghan children at the Mangere Refugee Centre did what all youngsters do to sleepy parents - pester them to play.

"Around lunchtime a lot of the kids were up and playing with soccer balls and bits and pieces and needing their parents to come out and play with them," centre manager Darrin Curtis said yesterday.

They are among 70 asylum seekers from Afghanistan - 21 family groups, including about 30 children aged under 11 and five pregnant women - who arrived at Auckland Airport at 7.30 on Wednesday night from Nauru.

Two children among the group have been admitted to hospital.

Immigration Service spokesman Ian Smith said two unrelated boys aged six and eight were taken to hospital yesterday in a feverish condition. They would stay in hospital under observation.

The remaining 61 were due to arrive just before midnight last night.

The first group landed amid tight security and arrival processing kept them at the airport for over eight hours. After they were taken to the refugee centre by bus, the last family did not get to bed until 6 am.

Mr Curtis said they spent yesterday resting.He described their mood as one of relief.

"Relieved was probably one of the emotions they were experiencing. [They were] subdued, quiet. I was surprised at how quiet the kids were; eyes bright, darting around."

He said the asylum seekers were humble and grateful to be allowed to come to New Zealand and had been patient with all the paperwork.

They were among 433 boat people plucked from a sinking ferry in the Indian Ocean off Indonesia by the Norwegian ship the Tampa on August 26.

After several days of rest, they will undergo physical and psychological checks and could start the refugee status application process, which could take up to 12 weeks.

An Australian report has claimed that many of those rescued by the Tampa are illegal immigrants from Pakistan.

But Marie Sullivan, the Immigration Service manager of refugee services, said no evidence supporting this emerged when the asylum seekers went through initial checks on Wednesday.

She said that if they did not meet the criteria for refugee status an attempt would be made to return them to their own country.