Public interest outweighs privacy in Ali Akbari case

“The non deportation of twice-convicted sex offender Sultan Ali Abdul Ali Akbari must be explained to maintain public confidence in our immigration system,” says ACT Leader David Seymour.

“New Zealanders might reasonably ask:

· "If assaulting a woman, then indecently assaulting children as young as eight does not get you sent home, where is the threshold?
· "If he hasn’t been deported now, what confidence can we have that he will be deported if he offends again?
· "What on earth were the mitigating factors that led to this decision?
· "Why can’t the Minister intervene in the public interest?

“Normally individuals should have their privacy respected to protect their dignity, but this case goes to the heart of public confidence in our immigration settings,” says Seymour. “The Minister must give a full explanation of the specifics of the case so that the public can be confident we aren’t just randomly importing rapists then bungling how we deal with them."

ENDS

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