Too fat, so she can’t migrate
An article by Various Sources
Posted November 21, 2007 
HER husband has the work skills, a job and a visa, but Mrs Rowan Trezise won’t be able to join him in New Zealand for Christmas – unless she loses some weight.
The Trezises, who are from the UK, were hoping to migrate to New Zealand where Mr Richie Trezise’s new job was.
Mr Trezise, 35, a rugby-playing Welshman, had lost weight to gain entry to New Zealand, reported The Daily Telegraph.
He had been rejected by New Zealand immigration officials for being a potential burden on the healthcare system.
His employer-backed skills visa was initially turned down when they discovered that his body mass index (BMI) was 42, making him morbidly obese.
BMI measures a person’s weight in relation to their height. Anything over 25 is regarded as overweight.
Mr Trezise, a submarine cable specialist, shed 5cm from his waist on a crash diet and moved to New Zealand in September.
Now, Mrs Trezise is on a strict diet, battling to shed the kilos so she can be reunited with her husband.
CHRISTMAS DEADLINE
Mr Trezise said that if she was not allowed in by Christmas, they would abandon the idea of migrating.
He said: ‘My doctor laughed at me. He said he’d never seen anything more ridiculous in his whole life.’
He said not every overweight person is unhealthy or unfit.
‘The idea was that we were going to change our lifestyle totally and get outdoors and on mountain bikes and all sorts of activities.’
Ms Robyn Toomath, a spokesman for Fight the Obesity Epidemic and an endocrinologist, said she was opposed to obese people being stigmatised.
‘However, the immigration department’s focus is different,’ she said.
‘It cannot afford to import people into the country who are going to be a significant drain on our health resources.
‘You can see the logic in assessing if there is a significant health cost associated with this individual and that would be a reason for them not coming in.’
The New Zealand Immigration Service said it did not know how many people were denied entry to the country because of high BMI readings.
However, comments posted on the Emigrate New Zealand website reveal that many have been turned down after medical tests revealed they were obese.
Do you think Immigration Services should ban overweight people from entering countries? Discuss with others HERE.
