The Immigration Minister has turned down an application to have detained Algerian refugee Ahmed Zaoui moved out of prison.
Zaoui has been in custody since arriving in New Zealand in late 2002 after the Security Intelligence Service said he posed a security threat.
His lawyers had applied for him to be moved from the Auckland Central Remand Prison to the Mangere Refugee Centre.
They claimed such a move was possible under the Immigration Act.
But Immigration Minister Lianne Dalziel says she has been advised that it is not possible to move Zaoui to the refugee centre.
Zaoui's lawyers have also written to Corrections Minister Paul Swain asking him to use his powers to temporarily release their client from prison into other accommodation.
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