Dear Editor, Unless there are legal grounds for detaining or preventing a person from departing the Cook Islands, one would expect the departure processing by CI immigration to be straight forward if the standard requirements are met.

I, instead, had a rather bizarre experience with one of the immigration officers on departing the Cook Islands on 15 January 2025.

After stamping the exit departure stamp in my departure form and passport, this person refused to hand over the passport together with my JQ boarding pass.

He reopened the passport and took issue with my not having a Cook Islander Status stamp in it because he said, “it’s the law”. He however couldn’t cite the relevant part of the “law” or provide a hard copy for reference. At this point he was basically treating me as if I was an illegal immigrant in my own country.

When I asked for his legal basis for refusing to hand over my passport, he couldn’t say so. He was adamant that I should have applied for and had a CI stamp in my passport before departure.

For the record, I wasn’t aware of this “law” at the time and, even if I did, it would not be high on my list of things to achieve in my short visit there. A trip to Atiu, which I disappointingly couldn’t make because of full return flights, would be of a higher priority than this stamp.

I suggested to him that this matter was more appropriate to be raised at the arrival rather than at the departure stage for Cook Islanders. No such information was provided on my arrival.

After 10-15 minutes of fruitless debate, he called for help. The outcome was I got my passport back. As family members had observed this delayed processing, I had to ring from JQ142 and explain the situation. I was honoured they were still waiting for a final farewell as we (including my son) boarded our flight.

I have since found that the CI Immigration Act became law in November 2021, i.e., just over two years after my previous visit. I have a lot to say about this Act, but that’s for another day.

It would however help if CI Immigration staff familiarised themselves with information on their own MFAI website. It only “recommended that Cook Islanders apply for the Cook Islands Status stamp in their passport”.

Confusing maybe but this statement correctly reflected the original intent of the Cook Islands Status stamp. It was to allow overseas airlines/shipping companies to facilitate the return of Cook Islanders on one-way tickets or they cop the cost of a return fare if the person is refused entry.

To the PMO: That immigration staff member could have made his point about the stamp and handed my passport back to me without delay. And I could have spent those 10-15 minutes doing some last-minute shopping before boarding my flight.

Nevertheless, this bizarre incident suggests that some CI Immigration staff, including the staff member concerned, need better training in immigration policy, processing and etiquette. They certainly can do better, and I can only hope that no other Cook Islander has been treated in this way since the Immigration Act came into force in November 2021.

Meitaki Ma’ata.

(Name and address supplied)

MFAI replies: Thank you for bringing this matter to our attention. We acknowledge the concerns raised and appreciate the feedback provided. We welcome any feedback that helps us improve our service and processes and we will look into this matter to ensure it is addressed appropriately.