LAWFUEL – The Legal Newswire – The Immigration Minister is not convinced Ali Panah will be put to death if he goes home to Iran, TVNZ reports.
David Cunliffe says the Refugee Status Appeals Authority has rejected a string of applications from Panah, saying there were just too many inconsistencies in his story.
“We do not accept the appellant’s evidence that he has been sentenced to death in Iran…or that he is, in fact, a genuine Christian convert,” the authority says. “For the above reasons…his second claim to refugee status is rejected as fabricated”.
And the Prime Minister says Panah’s time in New Zealand is running out. The government is confident it won’t face future hunger strikes from other overstayers.
“When people have exhausted all their legal options they are expected to leave New Zealand and if they don’t leave voluntarily they are deported…this happens virtually every day of the week,” Helen Clark says.
