Ibrahim Omer
Member of the New Zealand Parliament
for Labour party list
In office
17 October 2020 – 14 October 2023
Personal details
Born1979 or 1980 (age 43–44)[1]
Eritrea
NationalityNew Zealand
Political partyLabour

Ibrahim Omer (born 1979/1980) is a New Zealand politician. He was a Member of Parliament for the Labour Party from 2020 to 2023.[2][3]

Early life

Omer is a refugee from Eritrea.[4] His mother language is Saho[5][6] and he is a Muslim.[7] He fled his home as a teenager to Sudan, where the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees became involved and referred his case on to third countries for resettlement.

While in United Nations-run refugee camps in Sudan, Omer worked as an interpreter.[8] This work led to suspicions of spying, and he was retained by authorities until the United Nations intervened.[9][8]

Education and organising career

He arrived in New Zealand in 2008, through New Zealand's refugee quota.[10] Omer says that his time in New Zealand began with cleaning and scrubbing floors;[11] this period included working as a cleaner at Victoria University of Wellington where he would study and earn a Bachelor of Arts in political science in 2016. Omer described working until 4am cleaning the university, then attending a lecture at 10am in a room that he had cleaned the night before.[12]

Omer has worked as a union organiser for E tū,[12] and as a community advocate,[11] including as chairperson of ChangeMakers Resettlement Forum.[13][4] For this work he was awarded an Absolutely Positively Wellingtonian Award by the Wellington City Council in 2019.[14] Omer was also involved in advocating for a living wage, especially for cleaners at Victoria University of Wellington.[15]

Member of Parliament

New Zealand Parliament
Years Term Electorate List Party
2020–2023 53rd List 42 Labour

Omer entered Parliament in the 2020 election.[2] He was placed 42nd on the Labour Party's party list,[11] and Labour won enough seats to allow him to enter Parliament with that ranking.[2][16]

Omer is New Zealand's first MP from Africa, and the second MP to have entered New Zealand as a refugee, after Golriz Ghahraman.[8][3] Following Jacinda Ardern's resignation as Prime Minister in 2023, Omer said that "Throughout the past five and a half years, she has led with decisiveness, empathy and kindness".[17]

In February 2023, Omer was one of four candidates vying for the Labour nomination in Wellington Central for the 2023 election after Grant Robertson decided to stand only on the party list.[18] He was successful and contested the electorate for Labour at the general election.[19]

During the 2023 election, Omer claimed that Labour had not abandoned its policy of introducing a capital gains tax. This was rebuffed by Labour leader Chris Hipkins, who confirmed that Labour would not be introducing a capital gains tax if re-elected into government.[20] He contested the Wellington Central electorate and was defeated by Tamatha Paul by a margin of 6,066 votes.[21][22]

Political views

Omer expressed a desire to focus on racism, unequal opportunities, and issues facing low-paid workers during his time in Parliament.[8]

In December 2020, Omer joined Green Party MPs Golriz Ghahraman and Teanau Tuiono in pledging to form a new parliamentary Palestine friendship group to "raise the voices of Palestinian peoples in the New Zealand Parliament" during an event organised by the Wellington Palestine advocacy group to mark the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian people.[23]

References

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Ibrahim Omer.
  1. ↑ "Party profile: Labour Party — NZ Election 2020". Your complete guide to NZ Election 2020 — Policy.
  2. 1 2 3 "Capital painted red: Clean sweep for Labour in Wellington". The Dominion Post. 17 October 2020. Retrieved 17 October 2020.
  3. 1 2 "Election 2020: The 40 diverse new MPs entering Parliament". Newstalk ZB. 18 October 2020. Retrieved 24 October 2020.
  4. 1 2 "Refugee group unhappy they weren't consulted on new settlement location". Radio New Zealand. 9 February 2019. Retrieved 21 June 2020.
  5. ↑ "Maiden speech transcript: 'My name is Ibrahim Omer'". Newsroom. 27 November 2020. Retrieved 27 December 2020.
  6. ↑ "Ibrahim Omer, New Zealand's first African MP, delivers moving maiden speech – video". The Guardian. 26 November 2020. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 27 December 2020.
  7. ↑ "Maiden speech transcript: 'My name is Ibrahim Omer'". Newsroom. 27 November 2020. Retrieved 10 February 2021.
  8. 1 2 3 4 "Incoming Labour list MP Ibrahim Omer says it's a privilege to be first the African MP". Stuff. 18 October 2020. Retrieved 19 October 2020.
  9. ↑ "Election 2020: Forty newcomers include our first African, Latin American and Sri Lankan MPs". The New Zealand Herald. Retrieved 19 October 2020.
  10. ↑ "Ibrahim's story". Amnesty International New Zealand. 8 April 2016. Archived from the original on 1 November 2020. Retrieved 21 June 2020.
  11. 1 2 3 Daalder, Marc; Sachdeva, Sam (15 June 2020). "High Labour list place for epidemiologist". Newsroom. Retrieved 21 June 2020.
  12. 1 2 "Community change". Victoria University of Wellington. 5 August 2019. Retrieved 21 June 2020.
  13. ↑ "Our People". ChangeMakers Resettlement Forum. Retrieved 21 June 2020.
  14. ↑ "Wellingtonians step up for their communities". Wellington City Council. 25 June 2019. Retrieved 21 June 2020.
  15. ↑ "E tū organiser Ibrahim Omer is running for parliament". E tū. Retrieved 19 October 2020.
  16. ↑ "2020 General Election and Referendums - Official Result Successful Candidates". Electoral Commission. Archived from the original on 7 November 2020. Retrieved 5 February 2021.
  17. ↑ "MPs and New Zealanders pay tribute to PM". Otago Daily Times Online News. 19 January 2023. Retrieved 19 January 2023.
  18. ↑ Coughlan, Thomas (27 February 2023). "Former president Claire Szabó vs sitting MP Ibrahim Omer in race to replace Grant Robertson". The New Zealand Herald.
  19. ↑ Pearse, Adam (19 March 2023). "Wellington Central electorate: Labour chooses candidate to replace Grant Robertson in hotly-contested seat". The New Zealand Herald. Retrieved 19 March 2023.
  20. ↑ Ensor, Jamie (26 September 2023). "Election 2023: Chris Hipkins says Ibrahim Omer was 'wrong' to suggest Labour 'hasn't given up' on wealth, CGT". Newshub. Archived from the original on 10 October 2023. Retrieved 7 November 2023.
  21. ↑ Campbell, Georgina. "Who is Tamatha Paul? The young wāhine Māori who turned Wellington green". Newstalk ZB. Archived from the original on 20 October 2023. Retrieved 14 October 2023.
  22. ↑ "Wellington Central - Official Result". Electoral Commission. Archived from the original on 7 November 2023. Retrieved 7 November 2023.
  23. ↑ "New Zealand MPs take pledge for Palestine". Palestine Post 24. 9 December 2020. Archived from the original on 10 December 2020. Retrieved 11 December 2020.
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