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Tçnâ koe Pseudonym, South Island,

 

Thank you for your email of 15 May 2025, requesting information under the
Official Information Act (1982). At this stage, we need some information
from you to confirm whether you are eligible to make an OIA request.

 

Section 12(1) of the OIA specifies who can use it to seek information from
government agencies. You are eligible to make an OIA requests if you are
a:

(a)     New Zealand citizen; or

(b)     Permanent resident of New Zealand; or

(c)     Person who is in New Zealand; or

(d)     Body corporate which is incorporated in New Zealand; or

(e)     Body corporate which is incorporated outside New Zealand but which
has a place of business in New Zealand.

 

Please confirm by return email that you fulfil one of the criteria
outlined above and provide evidence of your eligibility by 23 May. We will
continue processing your OIA request once we have received this
confirmation.

 

Due to FYI’s email filtering, I cannot specify the email address you can
provide proof of your eligibility to, if you do not feel comfortable doing
this via FYI. However, this page on the MFAT website has the relevant
contact information: https://www.mfat.govt.nz/en/about-us/con...

 

Ngâ mihi

 

Executive Services Division

New Zealand Ministry of Foreign Affairs & Trade | Manatû Aorere

 

195 Lambton Quay, Private Bag 18901, Wellington 5045, New Zealand

 

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[UNCLASSIFIED]

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Tēnā koe,

Thank you for confirming your eligibility. This email confirms receipt of your request and advises that we will respond to it as soon as reasonably practicable, and in terms of the timeframes and requirements of the OIA.

Please note that our response letter to you (with your personal details redacted), and any enclosed documents, may be published on the Ministry’s website. We note that your proof of eligibility would not be included in this, also.

Ngā mihi

Executive Services Division
New Zealand Ministry of Foreign Affairs & Trade | Manatū Aorere

195 Lambton Quay, Private Bag 18901, Wellington 5045, New Zealand
http://www.mfat.govt.nz/ | http://www.safetravel.govt.nz/

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[UNCLASSIFIED]

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Tēnā koe Pseudonym, South Island,

 

I am writing concerning your Official Information Act 1982 (OIA) request
of 15 May 2025 which asks for:

 

Delegates from the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt visited New Zealand in May
2013 as part of The Nahda Project (Renaissance Project) to learn about
democratic processes. The visit was facilitated through the Ministry of
Foreign Affairs and Trade (MFAT). The group may have visited agencies such
as the State Services Commission (now Public Service Commission), which
oversees public sector performance, and also may have met with the Office
of the Ombudsman, a key institution for government accountability. Chief
Ombudsman Beverley Wakem is recorded as observing that the officials were
highly engaged, describing them as trying to “soak up as much information
as they could.” The delegation appeared to be focused on understanding how
New Zealand handles complaints, transparency, and oversight mechanisms.

 

I request all records held by MFAT regarding the May 2013 visit of Muslim
Brotherhood delegates from Egypt, including but not limited to
itineraries, delegate lists, meeting minutes, and correspondence with
other agencies or organisations.

 

This email is to advise that we will need to extend the time limit for
responding to you by 20 working days, to 14 July 2025. This is because
responding to your request necessitates review of a large quantity of
information, and meeting the original time limit would unreasonably
interfere with the operations of the Ministry (section 15A(1)(a) of the
OIA refers).

 

However, if this process is completed before 14 July 2025, the response
will be sent to you as soon as possible.

 

If you have any questions, you can contact us by email at:
[1]DM‑[email address]. You have the right to seek an investigation and
review by the Ombudsman of this decision by contacting
[2]www.ombudsman.parliament.nz or freephone 0800 802 602.

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