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Lawyers for Iranian asylum seeker Ali Panah are preparing a new submission to the Government in view of an Australian policy which has let 40 Iranian Christian converts stay in that country.
Mr Panah, who was released on bail on Monday after a 53-day hunger strike, is one of five Iranian Christians whose applications for refugee status have been rejected in New Zealand in the past two years.
One of the others, Thomas Yadegary, was released on bail in April pending deportation. Another, Amir Mohebbi, has been held in Auckland Central Remand Prison since January 2004. Two others have been quietly deported.
Immigration Minister David Cunliffe has said Mr Panah would also be deported as soon as either Iran or a third country agreed to accept him.
But Libby Hogarth, an Adelaide immigration consultant who represented 40 Iranian Christians held in 2005, said Australia had effectively accepted that genuine Christian converts should not be returned to Iran.
"Immigration deported one person in 2005," she said.
"There was such an outcry from the churches when that person was arrested at the airport and taken to prison that the then Immigration Minister, Senator Amanda Vanstone, said she would not deport any further Iranians."
Mrs Hogarth said she had since won temporary visas for all 40 of her Iranian Christian clients and they were applying for permanent refugee status.
She said the policy switch had encouraged some Iranians to claim that they had converted to Christianity to gain residence, but she refused to accept any cases unless their conversion was confirmed by a church.
Mr Panah's barrister, Grant Illingworth, QC, said New Zealand was now out of step with other democratic nations.
"My understanding is that the Australian policy is mirrored by steps taken by other countries including the United Kingdom, Belgium, Canada and Holland," he said. "The President of Iran is on record as saying something to the effect that he wants to wipe out Christianity from Iran.
"I am gathering information at the moment and hope to be in a position to put forward a dossier of information to Immigration NZ by the end of next week."
Mr Illingworth said he had had two long sessions with Mr Panah in the past two days and his condition was improving since he was bailed and ended his hunger strike on Monday.
His solicitor, Refugee Council of NZ secretary Heval Hylan, said both lawyers were acting for Mr Panah without pay because he was not entitled to legal aid. His board and medical costs are being met by the Anglican Church.
