A half-century fight: Restoring Tapaau’s citizenship at 90

Tapaau Lau’ese, who recently regained her New Zealand citizenship, can now travel freely between the two countries, thanks in part to her brother, Tafafuna’i Tasi Lau’ese.

It has been almost 50 years since Tapaau lost her right to New Zealand citizenship.

But at the age of 90, she has finally had it restored, thanks to a law change last year.

Green MP Teanau Tuiono introduced a member’s bill to restore the entitlement to New Zealand citizenship for a group of Sāmoans born between 1924 and 1948.

The bill passed into law last year, allowing over 400 Sāmoans to regain their citizenship, according to the Department of Internal Affairs.

For Tapaau, regaining her right to New Zealand citizenship is not just a legal formality. It marks a milestone that reconnects her with her family members who live in Aotearoa.

Her younger brother, Tafafuna’i, played an important role in facilitating her citizenship restoration.

“When it became available, I asked her if she wanted to, and she said yes because quite a few of her kids are here in New Zealand, and she can't come over [because of visa difficulties],” he says.

“So, I paid her a visit on Christmas with all the forms and had her sign them. “I came back here on January the 14th and started working on application forms and witnesses and things like that.

Tapaau Lau'ese Photo/Tafafuna'i Tasi Lau'ese Facebook

“I put in an application the following Monday, and I'm very surprised that seven or eight days later, I got the result that it was successful. We’re all so delighted.”

Born in 1935, Tapaau was once entitled to New Zealand citizenship, but she lost that right when laws changed under then-Prime Minister Robert Muldoon.

Tafafuna’i believes this reversal should have happened much earlier.

Tuiono’s bill, which restores some citizenship to some Sāmoans, received support from all political parties.

But former National MP, Anae Arthur Anae criticises the bill’s limited scope. While Anae appreciates New Zealand’s acknowledgement of past injustices, he believes the bill does not fully address the harm caused by the Citizenship (Western Sāmoan) Act 1982.

Anae points out that before the bill’s final reading last year, Government parties voted against allowing the heirs of those directly affected by the 1982 Act to be eligible for New Zealand citizenship.

“The Privy Council’s decision was clear. Those born between 1924 and 1949 and their heirs were New Zealand citizens,” Anae says. “The Government’s current approach ignores that and limits justice to just one generation.”

Watch Anae Arthur Anae's full interview on Pacific Mornings below.

He also criticises the denial of New Zealand pensions to elderly Sāmoans who meet the citizenship criteria but do not satisfy the 10-year residency requirement.

“How long do you think someone who is 76 years old will live to meet that requirement? By refusing them the pension, we’re imposing yet another barrier on people who have already been wronged.”

Since the Citizenship (Western Sāmoan) Act was enacted in 1982, many Sāmoans have faced challenges travelling freely between their homeland and Aotearoa.

Tapaau previously visited New Zealand but could not return for a long time due to documentation complications. Now, with her citizenship restored, she can visit family whenever she wants.

While she plans to remain in Sāmoa, her children are preparing to travel home to celebrate her 90th birthday in September.

Green MP Teanau Tuiono. Photo/PMN News/Ala Vailala

Tafafuna’imoved to New Zealand in 1962 after Sāmoa’s independence and is happy to see his sister reclaim what was once taken away from her.

“I am very, very excited and thankful to the people involved in trying to get this right back.

“My sister, we grew up together. She looked after me when I was young. She's done a lot for our family.

“I’m very, very happy and very, very pleased that I got the opportunity to give my sister New Zealand citizenship so she can move to and fro anytime she wants.”