Immigrants with HIV? Come on in!

[Expert]

Have I mis-read or mis-understood this article?
Are immigrants from certain aids-ridden countries not required to take an HIV test?

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/search/sto...3183027AF10017

Is the immigration influx problem so dire in NZ that we need to take on people with Aids (I realise HIV isn't full blown Aids) and who most likely will be sponging off the state and healthcare for most of their lives?

Haven't we got enough problems and spongers already?

I'm sure there are more worthy causes to admit to NZ, (NOT Ackmed Zowie, spelling?)

[James Deuce]

Oh FFS.

White sheets first door on the left.

Pointy hoods, take the lift to the 8th floor, ask for Cletus.

Eye holes for the hoods, try Mabel on the third floor. Take the hood off before she cuts the holes.

Ask Simeon nicely, he can knock together a 10 foot cross in about 10 minutes.

No admittance in the first place without your own pitchfork.

[Expert]

Oh FFS.

White sheets first door on the left.

Pointy hoods, take the lift to the 8th floor, ask for Cletus.

Eye holes for the hoods, try Mabel on the third floor. Take the hood off before she cuts the holes.

Ask Simeon nicely, he can knock together a 10 foot cross in about 10 minutes.

No admittance in the first place without your own pitchfork.

Jim2,
Do you make no attempt to hide your ignorance?

Since when has bringing a deadly disease into a country become a racial problem?

Why don't you pull your head in and think about the implications of this before making an ill informed, ignorant remark usually reserved for people who let their emotions rule their intelligence.

Do you think the quarantine regulations we have in place for animals are prejudist against cats and dogs?

[Joni]

My take on it...
I immigrated to NZ 3 years ago... I came from an African country where we all know numbers of HIV are higher. I was not required to do an HIV test to get into NZ, however the immigration rules need a syphalis test to be done.

I was curious about this and asked why... I mean surely a country should test for stuff like this. I was told the law was written in the 20's some time, and it has not been ammended yet for HIV.

sorry, to interfere in the arguement, but I thought it was relevant.

edit: rules may have changed now, I dont know...

[Dafe]

After recently realising that the Government had brought in potentially hundreds of HIV positive refugees, The Government has asked for all recent Zimbabwean/Algerian refugees to attend tests for the HIV virus.
The Government has guaranteed that they will fully treat any carriers of the disease and all financial costs for any treatment will be covered by the tax payers, with no cost to the refugees. Only 8 percent of those communities turned up to have tests done.

This is not the sort of information you hear of Government owned airways, otherwise they risk loosing their own government funding.
This news is about a month old.

[Dave Lobster]

The drugs are a fecking fortune.

Isn't it reasonable to expect immigrants to be disease free? It isn't racist, is it? How is it racist? Unless someone is suggesting that people of a certain race are more likely to have AIDS. Which I'm not, of course.


A couple of years ago, the UK took in several hundred AIDS infested alleged nurses. They're now working in hospitals in the UK. Nice..

[James Deuce]

Jim2,
Do you make no attempt to hide your ignorance?

Since when has bringing a deadly disease into a country become a racial problem?

Why don't you pull your head in and think about the implications of this before making an ill informed, ignorant remark usually reserved for people who let their emotions rule their intelligence.

Do you think the quarantine regulations we have in place for animals are prejudist against cats and dogs?

News Flash!

HIV/AIDS already in NZ and on the rise amongst the male population, despite years of education.

I'll pull my head when people start acting with compassion and acceptance and not blind fear, and what was that word you accused me of? Umm... let me see..., umm?

Ignorance!

My wife has worked in infectious diseases at Auckland Hospital, treating people dying of AIDS well before even the transmission vectors were understood and patients were treated like they had ebola. We've both looked after kids with HIV, my wife through nursing, and me reading stories, taking them for rides in an Austin Healy Sprite and on the back of bikes.

What about Syphilis in the Ethiopian community, or TB in Pacific Island communities, why don't we just turf them all out as well? Or Typhus that is springing up here and there in South Auckland.

Animal Quarantine is an economic issue, not a Human Rights one.

http://www.maf.govt.nz/quarantine/

You've no experience of people living their life under the cloud of a possible death sentence, no idea of the stigma attached to these people through ignorance. If they can come here and be treated with dignity then good stuff! You, personally, and people you know and care about, are not going to die of AIDS because a refugee with HIV was let into the country.

There's already enough Kiwis with HIV to realise the "nightmare" you've envisioned because of a small number of refugees, and those refugees are vastly outnumbered by home grown HIV cases.

The only implications I see are that NZ is closing its heart to people who need help.

[Deano]

The drugs are a fecking fortune.

Isn't it reasonable to expect immigrants to be disease free? It isn't racist, is it? How is it racist? Unless someone is suggesting that people of a certain race are more likely to have AIDS. Which I'm not, of course.


A couple of years ago, the UK took in several hundred AIDS infested alleged nurses. They're now working in hospitals in the UK. Nice..

It's a can of worms surely.

Do we test:
- anyone from Asia for bird flu,
- anyone from the middle east for Islamic suicidal tendancies,
- anyone of 'white' heritage to ensure the browning of NZ continues,
- anyone from America for any brain power ?
- anyone with a motorcycle licence for deviant behaviour ?

OOps.....just kidding, but a can of worms never the less.

[Indiana_Jones]

It's hardly a racist issue.

I can't give blood because I lived in the UK from '80 till '96, or whatever the cut off date is. And I have no issue with that, they don't want the risk of mad cow etc, and they don't want more HIV into this country then there already is.

It's a health issue, and it's for money reasons too. Like fuck the NZ tax payer is paying for someone to comes to NZ knowing they have HIV and expect to get free med care.

That's bollocks.

-Indy

[Clockwork]

Yap, sorry Jim2. You're right about the lack of compassion but I don't see this a race issue, its just as much an economic issue as animal quarantine.

[Hawkeye]

It's hardly a racist issue.

I can't give blood because I lived in the UK from '80 till '96, or whatever the cut off date is. And I have no issue with that, they don't want the risk of mad cow etc, and they don't want more HIV into this country then there already is.

-Indy

I'm in the same boat as you Indy. I was a Platelet donor for 4 years in NZ. Used to get hooked up to the machine once a month for 2 hours to give the donation. According to the blood service in Welly, I have the highest platelet count they have ever had. I have directly help hundreds of cancer victims recover from Chemo due to my donations and have been credited for directly saving the lives of 2 critical intensive care patients.
On the day that the announcement came that they were going to stop taking my donation because I could 'possilbly' have mad cow, I was actually in donating. Next thing I know I had TV1, TV3, The Herald and the Dom Post sticking camera's in my face asking my thoughts. I made the national news, headline story on all channels that night. (my 15 mins of fame).
That was 2 months before the final cut-off date. I sat down with the head of the department and scheduled a donation every 10 days with my last one being on cut-off day.

Where am I going with this. OK. You ask either of those 2 patient if they weren't prepared to risk getting mad cow by refusing to take my platelets. I'm sure I know the answer.
Due to the Kiwi OE culture, there are many Kiwi's who can't donate because they were in the UK during the timeframe. Add to that list all of the UK emmigrants.

It's all about risk mitigation but a blanket approach is not always the best solution. They are constantly asking for more blood donors as there is a huge shortage. Yet there is also a huge resource available out there.


As for HIV. With the size of the population, allowing emmigrants in (no matter what creed or colour) with HIV, raises the potential, even if it is very small potential, for it to become an epidemic. If they are not testing for it, then there is a possibilty that they are unaware they are carriers and therefore putting others at risk, even if unintentional.

Disclaimer: I do not profess to be an expert and I know there are others such as Jim who are much better informed than me. I'm just putting another point of view.

.

[Disco Dan]

It's hardly a racist issue.

I can't give blood because I lived in the UK from '80 till '96, or whatever the cut off date is. And I have no issue with that, they don't want the risk of mad cow etc, and they don't want more HIV into this country then there already is.

It's a health issue, and it's for money reasons too. Like fuck the NZ tax payer is paying for someone to comes to NZ knowing they have HIV and expect to get free med care.

That's bollocks.

-Indy

Yeah some boat indy,

cant give blood because *mooooo* they think I have mad cows *moooo* If I could give blood here (I did in England) I would. I may need it back someday.

didnt have any tests done to get into the country... but I was shocked more with the "English Language Test" I had to *mooo* take to get into NZ... ermmm where am I from again... farks sake. 100% bloody english and they want to test ME? idiots.

Wrap your tools lads - akmeid may know dover *moooooo*

[scracha]

My take on it...

I was curious about this and asked why... I mean surely a country should test for stuff like this. I was told the law was written in the 20's some time, and it has not been ammended yet for HIV..

I'm emigrated from the UK just over a year ago. Alongside the chest X-Rays we had to have HIV tests.

[scracha]

didnt have any tests done to get into the country... but I was shocked more with the "English Language Test" I had to *mooo* take to get into NZ... ermmm where am I from again... farks sake. 100% bloody english and they want to test ME? idiots.

Didn't you pass your GCSE english? I never had to take an "English Language Test". In fact, the rules state that if you're from a country where the 1st language is English you don't have to sit any English language proficiency tests.

[Disco Dan]

I'm emigrated from the UK just over a year ago. Alongside the chest X-Rays we had to have HIV tests.

ah yes the chest X-Rays, and blood test... people from a respectable country having to go through every test under the sun... but rock on up in a boat from 'HIV land' and welcome... heres you WINZ number...

I never sat my GSCE's ...why? well I was 13 years old when I emmigrated... so err no! It was 10 years ago.. all my family are English and ancesters etc are all English.. still had to sit the test. Rules obviously changed since then....