Teanau Tuiono, the MP in charge of the Bill, says it was submitters who got the Bill over the line. Photo: VNP/Louis Collins
A Bill that aims to restore citizenship to a group of Samoans born between 1924 and 1949 is set to pass its second reading later this morning, with all parties saying they will vote it through.
The Privy Council ruled in 1982 that all Western Samoans born between 1924 and 1948 were British subjects and therefore New Zealand citizens, but the government at the time - led by Robert Muldoon - overturned this ruling.
National was the only party not to support the Restoring Citizenship Removed By Citizenship (Western Samoa) Act 1982 Bill in the first reading, raising issues around legal precedent and immigration pressure.
The prime minister later said there were also considerations about how it would affect Samoa's population.
The Bill received unanimous support from select committee to proceed after MPs agreed not to include the descendants of the cohort.
Christopher Luxon said they wanted to be reassured the eligibility would be "very tightly held by those that were impacted by the 1982 legislation".
"That core group is about three and a half thousand people, aged 76 to 100."
Had the eligibility been widened to include the immediate children, it could have affected about 15,600 more people.
Former National MP Arthur Anae was not pleased with the changes from select committee, calling it "window dressing" and a "Christmas box with nothing inside it".
"I think we've just been let down," he added, "first of all they accept that they made a mistake, but in reality what they've given is nothing."
But Teanau Tuiono, the MP in charge of the Bill, said it was submitters who got the Bill over the line.
"I felt that members were moved, and if people can get the weight of that history and the weight of that injustice, not only for the grandparents, but also the children and the grandchildren, then there is scope to actually, to find a way to resolve issues."
Aigagalefili Fepulea'i-Tapua'i was one of those submitters, speaking earlier this year about how her whole life had been shaped by trying to get citizenship restored. Her parents were part of an effort in 2003 to address the issue, including a march to Parliament where Fili was pushed in a pram as a 5-month old.
"Over the years I've watched my parents quietly say kalo fae (an expression of sympathy) whenever someone else passed away who was eligible for this citizenship."
Fepulea'i-Tapua'i told members that people will continue to take the issue forward, whether the Bill goes through or not.
"Whether it's the same people in this room, whether its my generation, or whether it is the descendants of my generation.
"Understand that, and understand that you have the power to stop that from continuing on."
Tuiono will be watching the next stages closely.
"I'm really interested to hear from all the different political parties, of course, but in particular from the government parties, to see if there is scope to improve the bill, to make the bill more fair."
It came down to maths, he added.
"You need x number of votes around the house in order for something to move forward."
Vaovasamanaia Winston Peters has had a long-standing position the law was wrong, but has not said how his party will vote in the later stages.
"The critical timing of our vote will be at the committee of the whole House, when the real business about that legislation's amendment will be decided."
The second reading comes as the relationship between New Zealand and Samoa is in the spotlight.
Luxon is travelling to Samoa today for a meeting with Commonwealth Heads of state, and it follows the sinking of the HMNZS Manawanui off the island of Upolu.
Those who have fought for recognition over the decades say the time to get this right is now.
Anae said more could be done to address issues around the ability for Samoans to travel to New Zealand easily.
"When will they wake up? When will they realise that we are part of New Zealand," he said.
"The Pacific people have been treated wrong for too long, especially Samoan people in this case."
