New Zealand May Take Some of Boat PeopleNew Zealand Prime Minister Helen Clark has agreed that her country may accept some of the asylum seekers stranded on a Norwegian freighter off Christmas Island.She told Radio New Zealand here on Friday that there may be room within New Zealand's annual refugee quota to take in some of the 460 mainly Afghan boat people on board the Tampa. Clark said the annual quota has not been filled and this can provide a means to let in some of the asylum seekers. However she did not state how many of them can be accepted here. She said Australia has contacted New Zealand requesting help and her government is trying to be as sympathetic to Australia as it can. Clark also said there should be an international solution to the plight of the boat people, and that Australia and Indonesia should work out a way of preventing mass influxes of asylum seekers in the future. |
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