New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern (pictured) has officially apologized for the persecution of migrants from Pacific island countries in the 1970s. According to the BBC on the 1st (local time), he said, “I sincerely and fully apologize for the discriminatory application of the immigration law.”
At that time, New Zealand received a large number of immigrants from Pacific island countries such as Samoa and the Solomon Islands. However, in the early 1970s, New Zealand began to blame foreign workers as the unemployment rate soared amid the economic crisis. In the end, the government searched for and deported immigrants from Pacific island countries who had exceeded their stay period in 1974, and the deportation continued for 10 years. In particular, in an area where Polynesian immigrants used to live, they dragged dogs at dawn and sent police officers to enforce deportation orders.
[김덕식 기자]
[ⓒ 매일경제 & mk.co.kr, 무단전재 및 재배포 금지]
