New Zealand is showing signs of adopting a more punitive asylum system characterised by suspicion and control, according to two leading academics.

Professor Jay Marlowe and Timothy Fadgen, of the University of Auckland, say that New Zealand’s proposed new immigration laws will shift the system away from a “humanitarian orientation and toward one built on suspicion and control”.

Writing in The Conversation, the pair say the country’s ‘Immigration (Enhanced Risk Management) Amendment Bill’ will follow trend set in the US by the Trump administration.

“While the United States provides a clear example of how such a shift can unfold, it is not unique. Across a number of jurisdictions, asylum systems have increasingly been reframed through the language of risk and compliance, with greater emphasis on deterrence and enforcement,” they wrote.

“New Zealand’s legislative language and political rhetoric about ‘risk’, ‘compliance’, and ‘system integrity’ signals a similar shift. Asylum becomes less about protection and more a problem to manage, the pair said.

They said among the proposed changes to the law is the notion of “bad faith”, which means a claim for asylum could potentially be denied if a person is deemed to have contributed to their own risk, such as drawing attention to themselves through media or political activity.

“This creates a paradox: remain invisible and your claim may lack evidence; become visible and your claim may be questioned,” the pair said.

The bill also limits what asylum seekers can do while they await a decision, often for extended periods. Someone who has found a job or formed a committed relationship would be unable to shift onto a work or partnership visa.

Access to humanitarian appeals will also be reduced under the amendments.

Appeals have functioned as important safeguards, allowing decisions to be revisited when circumstances change, the academics say.

“Combined with faster processing and removal of a person from New Zealand, this leaves less room for error and can have potentially life-altering consequences,” they said.

New Zealand already has laws allowing for the detention of a “mass arrival” of asylum seekers.

The conservative National Party’s coalition partners are calling for tighter immigration controls across the board.

NZ First leader Winston Peters has called for even more draconian measures that those contained in the amendment.

The academics say the shift toward harsher, enforcement-first immigration mirror what has happened in the US under the second Trump administration.

“Deportations increase, access to asylum is constrained, enforcement capacity grows, and refugee admissions are reduced. At the same time, access to judges narrows, enforcement extends into everyday spaces, and personal data is repurposed for immigration control,” the pair wrote.

Read the full article: Is New Zealand sliding toward a US-style approach to immigration and asylum?