A New Zealand charity is in the process of engaging specialist immigration legal support to aid a Sri Lankan woman stuck in the Cook Islands for three years.
Deen Welfare visited the Cook Islands last week and met with Ruchira Rajasingha. The 50-year-old arrived in November 2023 from New Zealand and has been unable to leave the islands because New Zealand and Australia have continuously denied transit visas.
Rajasingha's status in the country is also illegal; however, because of the failure in getting transit visas to deport her, the Cook Islands Immigration has been forced to keep her in the country.
Deen Welfare Trust representative Tahir Nawaz said the legal representatives would independently review the case, assess the transit visa barriers, and develop a clear pathway for her safe return.
The Trust has opened formal communication with the New Zealand High Commission in the Cook Islands and formally forwarded the case file through to the Wellington-based New Zealand office for further consideration
Deen Welfare Trust has now formally requested an official meeting to align on repatriation pathways and explore longer-term welfare collaboration for Sri Lankan nationals across Aotearoa New Zealand and the Pacific region
"Our priority right now is simple: to get this vulnerable woman safely home to her family in Sri Lanka," Nawaz said.