Ali, in her 40s, has lived and worked here for about 11 years since moving to New Zealand for better opportunities to help financially support her son, Nathan Lyzal Amhas, 19, and her parents back home.<\/p>\n
\u2018It\u2019s not his fault he was born disabled\u2019<\/p>\n
The applications she has made over the years have been declined every time. <\/p>\n
\u201cThe main reason they are saying is [he has an] unacceptable standard of health,\u201d she told the Herald. <\/p>\n
Loriza Ali speaks to her son Nathan, who has cerebral palsy, via video call. Photo \/ Jason Dorday<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s not Nathan\u2019s fault – it\u2019s not his fault he was born disabled.\u201d<\/p>\n
Nathan has spastic quadriplegic cerebral palsy and can\u2019t walk. He has generalised developmental delay and, as his mum describes it, has the intellectual development of a 3-year-old.<\/p>\n
Ali\u2019s mother, now in her 60s, is Nathan\u2019s sole caregiver in Fiji. He used to be cared for by both Ali\u2019s parents but her father died while on holiday in New Zealand in 2022.<\/p>\n
Nathan\u2019s father has had no contact with Nathan since he was diagnosed with cerebral palsy as a baby, Ali said.<\/p>\n
He doesn\u2019t require ongoing medical attention or medication – he simply needs care, she said.<\/p>\n
Ali says she can\u2019t understand why authorities don\u2019t accept her son has a disability that can\u2019t be changed or improved.<\/p>\n
Loriza Ali with her son Nathan Lyzal Amhaz, who has cerebral palsy and lives in Fiji with his grandmother.<\/p>\n
\u201cEach time we\u2019ve applied, they\u2019ve said to give an updated medical report. But if you take him to the doctor, do you think any difference will be made?<\/p>\n
\u201cNathan is born like that – he will always be like that. He is disabled.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe has cerebral palsy – there\u2019s nothing more we can do about it. There\u2019s no treatment I can do overnight or in a month or a year … to treat him.\u201d<\/p>\n
The fight to reunite mother and son<\/p>\n
Immigration NZ\u2019s Acceptable Standard of Health requirement means that those applying for a visa to work or study in New Zealand must show that they have an acceptable standard of health.<\/p>\n
The requirement considers health criteria that include whether an applicant is at risk to public health or is going to add significant cost to, or demands on, New Zealand\u2019s health services.<\/p>\n
The ASH policy has drawn controversy from the likes of Migrants Against Acceptable Standards of Health Aotearoa, whose campaigner Aine Kelly-Costello says it is morally reprehensible that migrants with disabilities and health conditions – including disabled children – are measured by their economic value and considered a burden on the state.<\/p>\n
Nathan Lyzal Amhaz pictured with his grandmother, Sanara Begum, who is his sole caregiver in Fiji. Photo \/ Supplied<\/p>\n