The chairperson of the Governance and Administration Committee is now calling for submissions on the Restoring Citizenship Removed By Citizenship (Western Samoa) Act 1982 Bill.
Spokesperson for Pacific Peoples Green MP Teanau Tuiono’s Bill to restore citizenship rights denied to Samoans back in 1982 has passed its first reading in Parliament.
The bill would repeal the Citizenship (Western Samoa) Act 1982. It would also enable people whose New Zealand citizenship was removed by the 1982 Act to receive, on application, New Zealand citizenship as of right.
This bill would provide entitlement to New Zealand citizenship for a group of people born in Western Samoa whose citizenship was removed through the enactment of the Citizenship (Western Samoa) Act 1982.
Bills are proposals to make a new law or to change an existing one. Only Parliament can pass a bill. Each bill goes through several stages, giving MPs and the public the chance to have their say.
The closing date for submissions is 11:59pm on Friday, 31 May 2024.
