Reported back

The Transport and Industrial Relations Committee has reported back [PDF] on the Immigration Amendment Bill, and recommended that it be passed with only technical changes. This is a disaster for New Zealand. The bill violates both the Refugee Convention and the ICCPR, by essentially allowing people to be detained for long periods simply because Immigration officials are lazy. Passing it will destroy our international human rights reputation, and make us a pariah-state like Australia. Which, for a country with a mana-based foreign policy, which relies on leading by example to persuade other countries to improve their behaviour, is pretty much fatal.