Minister rejects family

The Government has rejected a last minute plea to grant asylum to a controversial family denied refugee status in Australia.

Immigration Minister Paul Swain said the Bakhtiari family - who have been at the centre of a four year legal battle in Australia to be granted refugee status - would not be accepted in New Zealand as refugees.

A letter from Catholic welfare agency, Centacare, had asked him to consider humanitarian grounds, and grant the eight members of the family refugee status in New Zealand.

The family are the most high-profile asylumseekers in Australia and their case has highlighted the plight of people kept for prolonged periods in detention centres.

Mr Swain confirmed he had received the letter, but said it was not a formal request and no official request had been received from the Australian Government.

He said Australia had determined the family were not refugees.

"I will not be considering this request, nor will I be intervening. The New Zealand Government does not intervene in the Australian refugee determination process."

The Bakhtiaris have made more than 20 failed legal challenges to gain refugee status in Australia and have now exhausted all avenues.

Central to the debate is a claim by the family that they are Afghani. This is rejected by the Australian Government, which insists they are actually Pakistani.

On Saturday Roqia Bakhtiari and her six children were removed from a Centacare house in Adelaide and placed in detention at Port Augusta, South Australia.

Roqia's husband, Ali, is in the Baxter detention centre.

The family's supporters believe they will be deported back to Pakistan before Christmas.

Centacare director Dale West said the family would be in danger if they were deported to Pakistan.

He said he was not disappointed by the New Zealand Government's response because he had not been too optimistic. "

I don't imagine the Australian Government would have been very happy with the New Zealand Government if they had have responded more positively."