The treatment of asylum seekers has worsened under the Labour Government, and pleas for change are falling on deaf ears.
Many asylum seekers are living on $40 a week from a charity, with some sleeping in bus stops as they wait for a decision about their immigration status.
People claiming asylum in Aotearoa can expect a 500-day wait to become refugees, with some people having to wait up to six years.
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“If we were to shut our doors today, they would be homeless with no food,” Christina Lane, a support worker for the Asylum Seekers Support Trust (ASST), said of her clients.
The charity relies on donations to help about 400 asylum seekers across the country, including those who had been detained in detention facilities.
Lane said clients are regularly referred by Immigration New Zealand, but the government agency refuses to provide funding for their care