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I have a question. I know I’ll be accused of being a racist for asking it but frankly, those who think I’m a racist may feel free to do so. I know who I am and I’m comfortable in my skin regardless of its colour and I’m not an apologist for other peoples’ perceived problems (or indeed their real ones).
My question is this: In the reporting of COVID-19 cases by the health department, details of background etc are often not even mentioned. I’m sure there’s a very good and legitimate reason for this but I’m just wondering. Does anybody share my wondering that so many of those who test positive seem to have arrived here from India?
In the Herald of September 01:
The Christchurch MIQ cases are a man in his 20s, a woman in her 30s, two women in their 20s, and a man in his 40s, who all arrived on the same flight from India via Fiji on August 27.
In isolation (if you’ll pardon the pun), one might not pay too much attention to this group, but they are not an isolated example. It seems that every report for the past month or longer, has referred to cases arriving from India via various stopovers.
If my impression is close to accurate (and I have no idea at all if it is or not), it’s looking as though a significant proportion of our population is now clearly from the subcontinent, given that we are daily assured that the border is closed except to returning New Zealanders, I can’t help but ask: “How can that be?”
It also raises questions about the whole subject of immigration and just what New Zealand’s current position might be. Are these people returning citizens? Residents? Work visa holders? Temporary visa holders? Just what criteria do they all fit and just what are our current immigration rules?
Perhaps they’re as flexible as the moving feast of cock-ups we’ve been dealt over the entire COVID-19 management by our sadly far too inexperienced government.
So, I can’t help but ask the obvious question: How come there are so many of them and how come so many of them happen to be in India during the peak of COVID-19? I could understand a few being stuck there on family visits or business trips, but it does seem that an awful lot of them have been stuck there. How did that happen and what’s behind it? I’m surprised nobody seems to ask the question.
If I may make a final point. That they are from India is largely immaterial. I know we have many very good citizens of Indian origin who have adopted our country and are now proud Kiwis, however, it does seem that a disproportionate number of inbound COVID-19 bearers are crossing our border from India and I’d just like to know why. Is that unreasonable?
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