Risk of Zaoui becoming 'political football' says lawyer

1.00pm

Algerian refugee Ahmed Zaoui would become a "political football" if a decision on his human rights was left to Immigration Minister Paul Swain, the Court of Appeal in Wellington was told today.

The point was made by Mr Zaoui's lawyer, Rodney Harrison, in a hearing of a Crown appeal against a High Court ruling last year.

That ruling said the Inspector-General of Intelligence and Security must take Mr Zaoui's human rights into account, in his review of a security risk certificate issued against Mr Zaoui by the director of the Security Intelligence Service.

Mr Zaoui has been in custody since he arrived in New Zealand and claimed refugee status 16 months ago.

He faces deportation as a result of the security risk assessment.

The Crown yesterday argued that the inspector-general need not consider Mr Zaoui's human rights -- namely the potential for torture or mistreatment if he was sent back to Algeria -- as he was not considering Mr Zaoui's deportation.

But Mr Harrison said today that whatever ruling the inspector-general made in his judicial review of the security risk certificate would affect whether Mr Zaoui was deported.

If the inspector-general did not consider Mr Zaoui's human rights, that only left Mr Swain, who was in a poor position to do so, Mr Harrison said.

Mr Swain was answerable to an electorate which was, in the present climate, uneasy about immigration and security issues.

"He (Mr Zaoui) will become a political football," Mr Harrison said.

He said Mr Swain would only have three days to make a decision and would not have all the facts before him.

The Immigration Minister was entitled to one oral briefing from the Security Intelligence Service when the security risk certificate was issued, but not detailed documentation of the classified information on which it was based.

Former immigration minister Lianne Dalziel had received such a briefing, but legislation covering the area did not make it clear if Mr Swain was entitled to a second briefing.

This would put him in an extremely compromising position, Mr Harrison said.

The tight timeframe, the lack of a proper hearing to consider counter-argument against the certificate, and no obligation for Mr Swain to give detailed reasons for his decision, all acted against natural justice for Mr Zaoui, he said.

Mr Zaoui, an elected MP before the military took over in Algeria, arrived in New Zealand on false papers in December 2002.

The hearing, before Justices Anderson, Glazebrook and Young, is expected to end today.

- NZPA

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