Auckland (The NZ Today)
Destiny Church leader Brian Tamaki says Australian authorities cancelled his visa at Brisbane Airport and sent him back to New Zealand after questioning him for more than 12 hours over his public comments about Sikh and Muslim communities.
Tamaki said he travelled to Brisbane on Tuesday with his family to speak at a Christian church conference but was stopped by Australian Border Force officers before being allowed into the country.
According to Tamaki, his visa was cancelled under Section 116 of Australia’s Migration Act, and he was kept under guard until being placed on a return flight to Auckland.
He arrived back in New Zealand on Wednesday night.
In a statement posted on social media, Tamaki shared excerpts he said came from Australian Border Force documents. Those excerpts referred to his social media comments as “inflammatory and concerning” and said his presence could pose a risk to the “good order” of parts of the Australian community, including Sikh and Muslim communities.
Australian immigration law allows a visa to be cancelled under Section 116 where authorities consider a person’s presence may pose a risk to the health, safety or good order of the Australian community, or part of it.
The Australian Border Force has not publicly confirmed the full details of Tamaki’s individual case.
Tamaki has characterised the decision as an attack on freedom of speech and religion, arguing he was travelling to Australia to preach at a Christian conference and not to commit any offence.
He has also questioned whether information was shared between New Zealand and Australian authorities before the decision was made.
However, there is currently no public evidence establishing that New Zealand Police or the New Zealand Government asked Australian authorities to cancel his visa or refuse him entry.
Tamaki’s claim of coordination between the two countries therefore remains an allegation made by him.
The border decision comes only days after Tamaki appeared in the Manukau District Court and pleaded not guilty to three charges of inciting racial disharmony under the Human Rights Act.
At that court appearance, Tamaki appeared upbeat as he pointed out there were no restrictions preventing him from travelling overseas or proceeding with his planned 31 October protest in Auckland. The refusal at the Australian border just days later marked a sudden change in those travel plans.
The New Zealand charges relate to social media material posted in June. Police allege the content was likely to excite hostility or ill will against racial groups, while Tamaki has argued his comments concerned religion and politics and has framed the prosecution as a free-speech issue.
The charges have not been proven in court.
In material reported publicly at the time, Tamaki made a series of comments about Hindus, Sikhs and Muslims and also referred to mosques and temples in inflammatory terms. He has since denied advocating violence and says his criticism was directed at religions and religious practices rather than people because of their race.
Tamaki says the Australian decision and the New Zealand prosecution raise a wider question about where governments draw the line between free expression and speech considered harmful to communities.
Australian authorities, however, have broad powers to cancel visas at the border where legal grounds are met.
Tamaki has now returned to New Zealand and says he intends to continue campaigning on free-speech issues, including promoting a 31 October rally at Britomart Square in Auckland.
Source: Brian Tamaki public on FB
