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Following a national recruitment process, we are very pleased to announce the appointment of Dr Terry Dobbs as our Academic Director - Māori, and Professor Nicola Gavey as our Academic Director - Tauiwi.
We are also pleased to announce that Associate Professor Janet Fanslow, previous Co-Director for the NZFVC, will be taking on a new role with us as Chief Advisor.
Terry Dobbs
Dr. Terry Dobbs (Ngāpuhi; Te Rarawa) has many years of experience working in the field of whānau violence prevention and intervention (both within practice and research) and in developing strategies for Māori using cultural frameworks and practices. Terry is a registered social worker and has worked in academic, statutory, community and iwi settings. She has led several research projects involving children and young people and their whānau and has published on Indigenous approaches to well-being (oranga), practice frameworks for mokopuna and whānau well-being, Indigenous research methods, Te Ao Māori approaches to evaluation, Māori-centred social work practice, youth suicide prevention and whānau violence prevention. Her recent research explores reclaiming and applying Te Ao Māori principles to inform and support taitamariki Māori intimate partner relationship well-being.
Nicola Gavey
Nicola Gavey is a professor in the School of Psychology at the University of Auckland and has conducted research related to domestic violence and sexual violence prevention since the mid-1980s. She has managed several major research grants and has published and spoken extensively on sexual violence and related issues. Her current research includes a critical analysis of the way consent operates in sexual violence prevention discourse, a study of the normalisation of “rough sex” and its relationship to sexual violence, and a study on image-based sexual abuse. Nicola and colleagues have recently developed a new model for working with boys and young men that is directly relevant to sexual violence prevention.
Statement from the new Directors
Mā whero, mā pango ka oti ai te mahi
"The Whakatauki above speaks directly to the need for collaboration. Traditionally ‘whero’ signifies chiefs/leaders and ‘pango’ the community/workers. It acknowledges the need for both to work together in order to complete the work. We wish to acknowledge the extensive mahi that the Family Violence Clearinghouse has already achieved and look forward to working in partnership (mahi tahi) with our Advisory Groups and the wider community to place te Tiriti o Waitangi at the centre of what we do.
Our core function at the NZFVC is to provide equitable access to good quality research and information that can help to inform policy and practice in Aotearoa. This includes drawing on both Western and Māori knowledge systems as well as practice informed evidence. How these systems of knowledge can inform our understanding of violence prevention will be a key focus for the NZFVC as we move forwards."
New Advisory Groups
We are also pleased to announce members to our two new Advisory Groups.
Māori Advisory Group
- Professor Denise Wilson (Ngāti Tahinga), Auckland University of Technology
- Professor Tracey McIntosh (Ngai Tūhoe), University of Auckland
- Helen Pearse-Otene (Ngāpuhi; Ngāti Rongomaiwahine-Kahungunu; Ngāti Ruanui), Independent
- Kerri Donoghue-Cox (Ngāti Mutunga), Ministry of Social Development
- Dr Michael Roguski (Te Āti Awa; Ngāti Tūwharetoa), Kaitiaki Research
- Rolinda Karapu (Ngāti Pukeko; Ngāti Awa; Ngai Tūhoe; Ngai Tai ki Torere; Ngāti Porou), Te Rau Ora
- Stacey Porter (Ngai Takoto; Ngāti Kahu; Ngāpuhi; Rongowhakaata; Ngāti Maru), Whāraurau
Tauiwi Advisory Group
- Dr Pauline Gulliver, NZ Family Violence Death Review Committee (HQSC)
- Sandra Dickson, Hohou Te Rongo Kahukura - Outing Violence; Shama Ethnic Women's Centre
- Sheryl Hann, Joint Venture Business Unit
- Dr Rob Thomson, University of Otago
- Dr Melanie Beres, University of Otago
- Paulette Benton-Greig, Auckland University of Technology
- Dr Debbie Hager, University of Auckland
- Professor Jennifer Curtin, University of Auckland
- Dr Lucy Langston, Ministry of Social Development
- Juanita Rojas, Shama Ethnic Women's Centre; University of Auckland
Update: The Crimes (Child Exploitation Offences) Amendment Bill received Royal Assent on 12 April 2023. The Crimes (Child Exploitation Offences) Amendment Act 2023 comes into force the day after receiving Royal Assent.
The Crimes (Child Exploitation Offences) Amendment Bill is a member's bill from Labour MP Ginny Andersen that was pulled from the Parliamentary ballot in August 2021. The purpose of the bill is to protect children at risk of harm from online exploitation committed by people 18 years and older.
The closing date for submissions is 10 December 2021.
The bill would amend the Crimes Act 1961 to make it an offence for a person over 18 to use online communications to falsely represent their age or identity with the intention to meet with someone under 16. The bill would also make it an offence for someone over 18 to use online communications to plan to cause harm to a person under 16.
The bill also proposes to increase the maximum penalty for a person convicted of sexual grooming of a young person from 7 to 10 years’ imprisonment.
At the first reading in Parliament, MP Ginny Andersen provided background to the legislation noting (see the Hansard Transcript):
"This bill is designed to help to ensure that our justice system can respond appropriately to protect our young people from those who engage in acts online to harm people, and to harm young people in particular. It is based upon similar legislation that has been passed in Australia, and the law in Australia was known as Carly's Law. It was named after Carly as the result of the efforts of her mum, whose name is Sonya Ryan, an Adelaide mother who campaigned for over a decade. That was after her 15-year-old daughter was murdered after an online predator posed as a teenage boy."
During the first reading MP Jan Logie said:
"But this is a really important conversation. It's about the safety of our children at the heart of it. I'm very pleased that this Parliament is getting to spend time on that conversation. We know that Governments have previously been pretty slow to respond to digital harm in particular, including online identity theft, revenge porn, online hate speech, racism, or extremism. We're slow to catch up. The legislation feels as if there are many moving parts, in terms of protections. So this piece of legislation is discrete, it is fixing a small part of it, and I look forward to the conversation in the select committee looking at how that fits in the whole picture and exploring the detail of it."
She also noted:
"The current law criminalises grooming at the point where an offender arranges to meet a child with the intention of having sexual activity, whether or not the intended abuse occurs. This bill will update these offences to cover digital harm and grooming at the point where the offender arranges or meets up with the young person following online communications."
She also raised questions about the increased penalties and how these fit with early intervention and rehabilitation.
You can find research and information to support submissions in our library under our Quick Search Topic Technology and Abuse.
Also see the report Ending Online Sexual Exploitation And Abuse Of Women And Girls: A Call For International Standards (2021) from Equality Now, an international human rights organisation.
Related news
The Justice Committee has submitted their final report on the Harmful Digital Communications (Unauthorised Posting of Intimate Visual Recording) Amendment Bill. The Committee recommending the bill be passed with amendments.
The Australian government has launched their first National Strategy to Prevent and Respond to Child Sexual Abuse 2021 - 2030. The Strategy is an initiative of the Australian, state and territory governments, and includes child sexual abuse in all settings, including within families, online and within organisations.
Related media
Playing catch-up to protect kids from digital harm, RNZ, 29.05.2022
Sharing intimate content without permission has 'serious consequences' - Netsafe, RNZ, 30.11.2021
Woman’s photo posted to porn site but only perpetrator gets access to counselling, RNZ, 29.11.2021
Chewing on bills: committees enjoy gristle, RNZ, 12.11.2021
Keep it Real Online – Phase 2, Beehive media release, 31.08.2021
Netsafe prepares for an influx of online harm incidents, Netsafe media release, 27.08.2021
The rise of cybercrime and NZ's fragmented response, RNZ, 15.06.2021
Govt acts to protect NZers from harmful content, Beehive media release, 10.06.2021
The White Ribbon NZ campaign this year is Whiti te rama - Shine a light on what works in violence prevention in our communities. The campaign is focused on highlighting stories of change to inspire people who are currently experiencing violence. White Ribbon is asking people who have used violence and people who have experienced violence to share their stories of coping, getting support, and the tools that helped with change.
White Ribbon NZ has also launched a new video and new toolbox on call-in culture. The campaign notes that:
“Effective prevention moves beyond simply stopping violence into promoting alternative healthy behaviours. We must encourage boys and men to recruit and educate other boys and men in ways that lift each other up. An effective way to do this is by ‘inviting’ men, rather than indicting them. This means not only modelling positive behaviour in front of each other, but also understanding that other men might be at a different part of their journey and still working it out for themselves.”
According to White Ribbon Ambassador David Cournane:
“Once upon a time if you were coaching a team you would have highlighted mistakes and used shame to call out unwanted behaviours. While we still have to correct errors, there is now much more of a focus on finding those moments where the players are doing something well, and using these as key learning moments. With a focus upon growing from our strengths and our successes, we are more likely to engage those around us.
I know that being empathetic, and understanding the drivers behind someone’s behaviour, and speaking to those issues, is far more effective than just simply calling someone out. If you want people to change, you’ve got to give them a reason to change, and that requires being empathetic and kind,”
The campaign also seeks to shine a light on pre-colonial attitudes to women and children and the ways in which colonisation has led to limited understandings of possible masculinities. The campaign notes that:
“Historical records suggest that the possibilities for Māori tāne were much broader before the importation of European models of masculinity. These records suggest Māori men were looked down upon by Pākehā for lacking appropriately stoic ‘masculine’ behaviours, and were instead talkative and animated, partook in the same work as women, and readily expressed their emotions. The fact that colonisation has led to limited understandings of possible masculinities, and has justified and excused abuse at the hands of men suggests that unpacking assumptions about colonial masculinity can help Aotearoa reset our attitudes and behaviours by building on traditional Māori values.”
White Ribbon has also teamed up this year with Hohou te Rongo Kahukura – Outing Violence and Rainbow Hub Waikato to develop a new Toolbox for parents with kids who break gender rules. The Toolbox – Kids and Gender – will be launched at a webinar on 29 November. Also see our calendar for educational webinars and events happening around the country.
Update: The Kids and Gender Toolbox has been launched.
See more information about this year's White Ribbon campaign. Find local White Ribbon events or list your event.
See the news stories below for resources from previous White Ribbon campaigns.
Economic Abuse/Harm Awareness Day
Good Shepherd NZ is raising awareness about economic abuse in recognise of Economic Harm Awareness Day, the 26 November with resources and a webinar. The Canadian Centre for Women’s Empowerment launched Economic Abuse Awareness Day in Canada in 2019 to increase awareness of economic abuse. This is the first time the day is being recognised in Aotearoa New Zealand.
For recent research about economic abuse watch the webinar from Australia’s National Research Organisation for Women’s Safety (ANROWS) on Understanding economic and financial abuse. The webinar draws on a series of research reports from the University of New South Wales’s Gendered Violence Research Network on financial abuse.
16 days of activism against gender-based violence
The international 16 days of activism against gender-based violence runs from 25 November (International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women) until 10 December (Human Rights Day) each year. The 2021 UNiTE Campaign’s global advocacy theme this year is: "Orange the World: End violence against women now!" For more information and actions you can take, see this year’s concept note.
It has been 30 years since the global 16 days of activism campaign launched to raise awareness about violence against women. To acknowledge the continued need to urgently address femicide, the Global 16 Days Campaign has published the 2021 Femicide Advocacy Guide. The guide discusses the prevalence of femicide and the international norms and standards that could be used to address femicide.
In a Statement to the UN General Assembly, the new Special Rapporteur On Violence Against Women, Its Causes And Consequences, Reem Alsalem acknowledged the report Taking stock of the femicide watch initiative (2021). The report was completed by outgoing Special Rapporteur, Ms. Dubravka Simonovic. It highlights research on femicide and evidence-based policy and legislative responses, as well as international differences in data collection and femicide definitions.
In the same Statement, Special Rapporteur Reem Alsalem outlined her thematic priorities for the next three years, including:
- violence against indigenous women and girls
- gender-based violence in the context of disaster risk reduction and response related to climate change
- psychological violence against women
- the relationship between the condition of statelessness, gender, and gender-based violence
- the intersection between gender-based violence against women, sexual orientation and gender identity and expression.
Related news
Manatū Wāhine |Ministry for Women is developing the Women's Employment Action Plan. The plan will identify actions to improve the employment outcomes for women in Aotearoa New Zealand. The Ministry media release notes "When completed, the action plan will bring together current work across government and identify possible new areas for action that may emerge through engagement, to support women’s employment." The Ministry is asking for feedback on two questions:
- "What do you think are the barriers to women’s employment?"
- "What actions do you think should be included in the Women’s Employment Action Plan?"
Send your feedback by email to mahi@women.govt.nz and reference 'Feedback on Women's Employment Action Plan'.
Related media
Shine A Light On Disability And Violence, Press Release: White Ribbon, Scoop, 13.12.2021
BNZ and other lenders are waiving debts incurred in abusive relationships, Stuff, 30.11.2021
His debt in her name: Economic harm in which lenders are complicit, Stuff, 26.11.2021
BNZ Sets Sights On Tackling Economic Harm, Press Release: BNZ, Scoop, 26.11.2021
PSĀ Wāhine Call For An End To Violence And Harassment, Press Release: PSA, Scoop, 25.11.2021
Breaking the cycle of violence: The numbers behind 'a hidden pandemic', Stuff, 25.11.2021
On International Day, UN chief says ‘violence against women is not inevitable’, UN News, 24.11.2021
White Ribbon advocating conversations with mates, RNZ, 23.11.2021
White Ribbon Day chance for reset, Waatea News, 23.11.2021
Shine A Light On Stories Of Change, Press Release: White Ribbon, Scoop, 15.11.2021
Motivation to change: A basketball coach's mission to support Pasifika dads, Stuff, 17.10.2021
New reports, government strategy and consultation on prison
The Department of Corrections has announced a new women's strategy. The strategy was launched alongside the public release of three reports from the independent Corrections Inspectorate focused on women in prisons. The NZ Human Rights Commission has also published a new report on women in segregated housing in prisons across Aotearoa New Zealand. Lastly, Justice Sector agencies are inviting feedback on a Long-Term Insights Briefing on imprisonment.
New women's strategy for Corrections
The Department of Corrections launched Wāhine - E rere ana ki te pae hou (2021), the organisation’s new women’s strategy for 2021-2025. In the overview of the strategy it states "This strategy aims to reduce reoffending through gender and culturally responsive programmes and services that provide holistic support. It will also achieve this by ensuring our workforce, at all levels, works in ways that respond to the unique needs of women." The media release notes that the strategy was developed in consultation with wāhine Māori, including women with lived experience of the justice system, whānau, service providers, staff and a range of agencies and iwi organisations.
In announcing the Strategy, Corrections Minister Kelvin Davis said "The current prison system is male-focused, a one-size-fits-all approach.” He went on to say "Many women in prison have had extremely complex pasts, often being the victims of violence and abuse themselves. We need to make sure we are giving them the best opportunity to rehabilitate their lives while keeping the community safe."
Reports on women in prison
At the same time, three reports have been released by the independent Corrections Inspectorate. The reports were prompted by a complaint in February 2020, from a lawyer representing three women at Auckland Region Women’s Corrections Facility. As the investigation got underway the Inspectorate broadened the focus to all three women's prisons and a thematic inspection of the lived experiences of women in prisons.
The single over-arching recommendation by the Chief Inspector of Corrections in the Thematic Report: The Lived Experience of Women in Prison (2021) is:
"The Department must review the strategic and operational leadership, resourcing, operating model and service delivery across the women’s prison network (including health services) to enable, and deliver, better outcomes for women, which are critically gender specific, culturally responsive and trauma informed."
The Human Rights Commission (HRC) has published the report, First Do No Harm: Segregation, Restraint and Pepper Spray use in women’s prisons in New Zealand (2021). HRC commissioned Dr Sharon Shalev of the Centre for Criminology at the University of Oxford to write the report. Dr Sharon Shalev, Awatea Mita and Professor Tracey McIntosh spoke during a webinar to launch the report.
Consultation to develop briefing on imprisonment
Justice sector agencies are inviting feedback to help develop a Justice Sector Long-term Insights Briefing on imprisonment. The consultation notes:
"This Briefing is an opportunity to understand more about what shapes the prison population and what drives the outcomes for those who have been imprisoned. This understanding will enable a deeper discussion about imprisonment that will inform future policy options.
The Briefing will build on what we already know about this subject through extensive public consultation and research over several decades."
There are two phases for the consultation. This first phase involves an online survey with 13 questions.
The closing date to give feedback on this phase is 30 November 2021.
A draft briefing will be developed from the feedback from the first phase. In early 2022, there will be a second phase of consultation on the draft briefing. The final Briefing is expected to be presented to Parliament in 2022. The consultation notes the Briefing "...will be available to government and the public as a resource and evidence base to help improve our future prison system."
Long-term Insights Briefings are a new government initiative requiring agencies to develop and share insights on the trends, risks and opportunities that affect or may affect Aotearoa New Zealand. The Public Service Act 2020 introduced this initiative which requires government department chief executives to publish a Long-term Insights Briefing at least once every three years. The Briefings are not government policy.
This is the first Justice Sector Long-Term Insights Briefing. The focus on imprisonment was chosen by the Justice Sector Leadership Board and Ināia Tonu Nei (a name shared by a kaupapa, a hui, a report and a group of kaitiaki with a goal to reform the Justice system). The Justice Sector Leadership Board includes the Secretary for Justice, NZ Police, Department of Corrections, Oranga Tamariki, Serious Fraud Office and Crown Law Office.
Update: The Ministry of Justice (MOJ) has published findings from this first part of the consultation to develop the Justice Sector Long-term Insights Briefing focused on imprisonment in a consultation document. MOJ is inviting further feedback on the consultation document. The closing date to give feedback is 7 October 2022.
More information
For more information about the intersection of women who have been victims of family and/or sexual violence and prisons see the following:
Women’s imprisonment and domestic, family and sexual violence: research synthesis (2020), published by Australia's National Research Organisation for Women's Safety (ANROWS)
Prison as Destiny? Descent or Dissent? (2020) by Tracey McIntosh and Maja Curcic in Neo-Colonial Injustice and the Mass Imprisonment of Indigenous Women
He rau murimuri aroha: wāhine Māori insights into historical trauma and healing (2019), published by Te Atawhai o Te Ao: Independent Māori Institute for Environment & Health
Wāhine Māori: keeping safe in unsafe relationships (2019) by Denise Wilson, Alayne Mikahere-Hall, Juanita Sherwood, Karina Cootes, and Debra Jackson, published by Taupua Waiora Research Centre
Thinking differently in order to see accurately: explaining why we are convicting women we might otherwise be burying (2019) presented by Julia Tolmie
Social entrapment: a realistic understanding of the criminal offending of primary victims of intimate partner violence (2018) by Julia Tolmie, Rachel Smith, Jacqueline Short, Denise Wilson and Julie Sach, published in the New Zealand Law Review
New Zealand prisoners' prior exposure to trauma (2017) by Marianne Bevan, published in Practice: the New Zealand Corrections Journal
Māori and Prison in The Palgrave Handbook of Australian and New Zealand Criminology (2017), by Tracey McIntosh and Kim Workman Crime and Justice
Behind the wire: Māori women and prison (2016) by Tracey McIntosh, presented at the Women's Studies Association of Aotearoa New Zealand (WSANZ) conference
Related media
Corrections slammed for Arohata prison purge, Waatea News, 24.08.2023
Figures reveal prisoners’ huge mental health need, Newsroom, 14.04.2023
Our prisons are breeding grounds for crime – what needs to change?, The Spinoff, 04.10.2022
Prisoner numbers are down: let’s not go back to a ‘lock ’em up’ mindset, The Spinoff, 29.09.2022
Prison’s mother’s unit unused for eight years, Newsroom, 09.05.2022
Lack of support for young female offenders - Youth Court Judge, RNZ, 18.02.2022
Shining a light on future wellbeing, Te Puni Kōkiri news, 18.11.2021
Prison trauma harming communities, Waatea News, 08.11.2021
The inadequacy of prisons for women, Newsroom, 05.11.2021
Oxford criminologist 'outraged' by NZ women’s prisons, RNZ, 04.11.2021
Prison changes reflect women’s roles, Waatea News, 01.10.2021
The Government announced a number of initiatives, including:
- establishing a Ministry for Disabled People (the name of the new ministry has not been determined)
- implementing the Enabling Good Lives approach to Disability Support Services nationally
- introducing new legislation on accessibility
- establishing a new Accessibility Governance Board.
In the announcement, Health Minister Andrew Little said “The disabled community told us that disability issues are not just health issues. We’ve heard and responded to their desire to lift disability support out of the health system, which is why we’re establishing a new Ministry for Disabled People to deliver support for all disabled people.”
The new Ministry for Disabled People will be hosted by the Ministry of Social Development (MSD).
The media release states "The Ministry will:
- Drive better outcomes for all disabled people
- Lead and coordinate cross-government strategic disability policy
- Work to deliver and transform disability support services, and;
- Progress work on the broader transformation of the wider disability system."
In her speech, Minister for Disability Issues Carmel Sepuloni said the new ministry "...has yet to be officially named but for now we will call [it] - The Ministry for Disabled People."
The Enabling Good Lives approach was developed by an independent working group of people with disabilities, their families and whānau, advocates and allies. It was designed to help support transformative change to Disability Support. The model has been trialled with Disability Support Services in Christchurch, the Waikato, and mid-central, which will now be rolled out nationally and according to MSD, the Government "...has an ambition for transition broader than services relating to disability issues."
The Government also plans to introduce The Accessibility for New Zealanders Bill. According to MSD, this legislation "...will include a suite of measures like methodologies for addressing accessibility barriers, monitoring, evaluation and reporting requirements, expectations for engaging with and listening to disabled people, as well as the purpose and principles for the accessibility framework."
When making the announcement Minister Sepuloni said “The disabled community’s voices will be embedded at all levels of decision-making, from the formation and running of the Ministry, to the development of accessibility legislation.”
Alongside the disability system reform and to support the legislation, the Government will establish an independent Accessibility Governance Board. The Board will ensure people with disabilities continue to be involved in decision making at the highest level possible.
Minister Sepuloni's speech outlined next steps saying:
"In the coming weeks, an Establishment Unit for Disability System Transformation will be established to stand up the new Ministry.
They’ll undertake a work programme in collaboration with the Ministry of Health, working through the elements of what the new Ministry will look like, and the ongoing transformation of disability support services.
Over the next few months, targeted engagement and consultation will take place with the disabled community and sector, whānau, Māori, iwi leaders and Pacific.
A key focus will not only be about locking down the detail of these changes but also ensuring that disabled people are not worse off during the transition period.
The Unit will facilitate important conversations on key policy aspects such as the name of the new Ministry and future transformation opportunities once the new Ministry is established.
MSD will also work alongside the disabled community on the name and make-up of the Accessibility Governance Board, and how we can embed Te Tiriti o Waitangi and reflect Te Ao Māori across all elements of accessibility and the system.
Having the offer of support extended to us by National Iwi Leaders Chairs and the Māori Health Authority gives me confidence that we can do this and do this right."
Minister Sepuloni will report back to Cabinet on progress early in 2022.
For more information see:
- Disability System Transformation: establishing a Ministry for Disabled People and national implementation of the Enabling Good Lives approach - Cabinet paper (available in different formats)
- MSD's Work Programmes on Accessibility, the Disability System Transformation and the Lead programme of work (to support leaders to create an inclusive and welcoming environment for people with disabilities)
- the recording of the live steam Announcement on Disability System Transformation and Accessibility from Attitude.
Disability Rights Commissioner Paula Tesoriero welcomed the announcement saying:
"Disabled peoples’ lives will be profoundly affected by the Government’s recent announcement about a new Ministry for Disabled People. I welcome these announcements as a potential platform for positive change. And change is certainly needed to create genuine transformation for disabled people in Aotearoa New Zealand. Transformation will rest on ensuring true partnership with Māori and leadership by disabled people and tāngata whaikaha Māori."
"It’s pleasing to see an explicit commitment to working closely with the disabled community to establish the Ministry. This is an aspect I will be closely monitoring. This Ministry won’t succeed without disabled peoples’ leadership - and disabled people as employees and decision-makers during the transition and in its on-going development."
See the related media below for responses from disability advocates and organisations.
Related news
A new report proposes a legal framework to make New Zealand accessible and remove barriers that create disabling experiences. The report, Making New Zealand Accessible: A Design for Effective Accessibility Legislation (2021), sets out a legislative framework that includes an Act, a regulator, a tribunal, accessibility standards, and a way to notify the regulator of barriers. The framework is designed to meet New Zealand’s obligations under Te Tiriti o Waitangi and the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.
Related media
Disability Ministry's ongoing costs and funding kept secret, RNZ, 29.01.2022
Shine A Light On Disability And Violence, Press Release: White Ribbon, Scoop, 13.12.2021
Dr Huhana Hickey | Kai Māngai Hāpori Whānau Hauā, Waatea News, 16.11.2021
Ministry for disabled has a big job to do, RNZ, 04.11.2021
New Ministry for Disabled People needs a relevant Māori lens, advocates say, Stuff, 02.11.2021
Vaka Tautua Applauds Disability System Transformation, Vaka Tautua media release, 29.10.2021
IHC Welcomes New Ministry For Disabled People, Press Release: IHC, Scoop, 29.10.2021
In September 2021, the Government released the report from the Ministerial Advisory Board which was set up to look at the child care and protection system. The report, Hipokingia ki te Kahu Aroha Hipokingia ki te Katoa: initial report of the Oranga Tamariki Ministerial Advisory Board July 2021, is also available in Te Reo Māori. The Cabinet Paper: Direction for Oranga Tamariki August 2021 and a new Oranga Tamariki Future Direction Action Plan (September 2021) were also publicly released.
The members of the Ministerial Advisory Board are Matthew Tukaki (Chair), Kahurangi Rangimārie Naida Glavish, Tā Mark Solomon and Shannon Pakura. In the report they write that "...we see a need to relentlessly focus the direction of Oranga Tamariki onto improving outcomes for tamariki and their whānau, and to enabling those capable of delivering this outcome most effectively to get on with the challenge." They found that the lack of focus for Oranga Tamariki "...has blurred responsibilities in two significant ways:
- first, the Crown has assumed the lead role in supporting tamariki and whānau without really knowing how to be effective in this; and
- secondly, the Crown has undermined the role of communities and particularly of hapū and iwi in leading their own communities."
As a result the report has three overarching recommendations:
- "In order to lead prevention of harm to tamariki and their whānau, collective Māori and community responsibility and authority must be strengthened and restored"
- "In order to work collaboratively with Māori, community organisations and other government agencies, the purpose of Oranga Tamariki must be clarified"
- "A national Oranga Tamariki Governance Board should be established to oversee the diversity and depth of changes needed."
The report includes a table of terms that the Ministerial Board was asked to review and the Board's assessment of whether they could provide assurance that Oranga Tamariki had addressed these terms. The Board concluded on all terms, that either it was a work in progress or an identified gap.
In addition, the report concludes with 25 specific recommendations. Among the detailed recommendations are calls for a programme of community engagement to plan how Māori collectives and community will lead prevention harm and for a national Oranga Tamariki Governance Board by the end of 2022.
Following the recommendations, the Board has also proposed to expand their review to include care residences, the role and function of the National Contact Centre, youth justice outcomes, and to consider the legislative parameters that Oranga Tamariki operates within, as well as the needs of tamariki with disabilities.
When releasing the report, Children’s Minister Kelvin Davis announced that the Government would accept all recommendations from the report saying:
“This report will end uplifts as we have known them. While there will always be a need for some children to be taken into care, this should only happen after all avenues with community and whanau have been exhausted.”
“Community-led prevention is the biggest thing for me from this report – our communities have the answers and Oranga Tamariki needs to work with them to stop children entering into care.”
This brief summary from Oranga Tamariki notes that Oranga Tamariki is tasked with supporting the Ministerial Advisory Board to develop options for a permanent governance board for Oranga Tamariki. It also notes that the Minister for Children will report back to Cabinet in February 2022 on:
- the implementation of the Action Plan
- options for a permanent governance board for Oranga Tamariki
- the development of a workforce strategy
- regional funding and decision-making.
For more information watch the recording of Minister Davis and Ministerial Advisory Board Chair Matthew Tukaki when announcing the report and government response. Also listen to interviews from Waatea News with Minister Davis and Matthew Tukaki.
Many advocates and experts have commented in interviews and articles on the report and response from the Government including VOYCE – Whakarongo Mai, Nicola Atwool, Lady Tureiti Moxon, Jean Te Huia and Social Services Providers Aotearoa. This brief video from Te Karere highlights views from Te Ao Māori leaders including Tupua Urlich (National Care Experienced Lead at VOYCE-Whakarongo Mai), Assistant Māori Commissioner for Children Glenis Philip-Barbara, Te Pāti Māori Co-leader Rawiri Waititi, and Annette Sykes. See further commentary in the related media below.
Oranga Tamariki has published three papers that describe the background of Te Toka Tūmoana over the period 2013-2016. Te Toka Tūmoana is Oranga Tamariki's Indigenous and bicultural framework that describes the principles to guide practitioners, managers and leaders through work with tamariki and whānau Māori.
Funding for Ngāi Tahu iwi-led prevention programme
Minister Kelvin Davis announced that Te Rūnanga o Ngāi Tahu (Te Rūnanga) will receive $25.9m of Oranga Tamariki funding over three years to improve outcomes for tamariki and whānau in the Ngāi Tahu takiwā (tribal area). Te Rūnanga o Ngāi Tahu is the entity that represents 18 Papatipu Rūnanga which make up the tribe of Ngāi Tahu. The tribal takiwā, or territory, covers most of Te Waipounamu (the South Island).
The funding will support the new Whānau as First Navigators programme. The programme will support Ngāi Tahu and Ngā Maata Waka health and social service providers to build on their current work supporting whānau. This will focus on finding solutions for whānau before tamariki end up in the care of Oranga Tamariki.
Te Rūnanga o Ngāi Tahu Kaihautū (CEO) Arihia Bennett said this "...mahi could include, specialist support, respite care, arrangements with extended whānau, or engaging tamariki with sports and cultural experiences.” Te Rūnanga will also look at how to "...influence and support the cultural development of social workers working alongside whānau Māori within the Ngāi Tahu takiwā."
Te Rūnanga o Ngāi Tahu Kaiwhakahaere Lisa Tumahai said the name Whānau as First Navigators reflects the story of Rākaihautū, the helmsman of the waka Uruao, who made his journey from Te Patu nui o Aio to Aotearoa. She said:
“This name reflects the strength and resilience of whānau to lead their own journey and to make the best decisions for their tamariki. This programme will strengthen and enhance whānau rangatiratanga, while providing whānau access to the services they need, when they need them.”
The announcement is part of renewing the Strategic Partnership Agreement between Ngāi Tahu and Oranga Tamariki, originally signed in 2018. The Beehive media release stated "This will see decision making and resources shifted to communities, a new operating model with better support and training for social workers and an immediate halt to uplifts without proper consultation."
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Social Development and Employment Minister Carmel Sepuloni has appointed Judge Frances Eivers (Ngāti Maniapoto and Waikato) as the new Children’s Commissioner. The Children’s Commissioner is an independent Crown Entity and advocates for the interests, rights and wellbeing of children and young people.
Outgoing Children's Commissioner Judge Becroft reflected on the changes still needed for children and young people in his lecture Five missing pieces in the Youth Justice jigsaw (recording available) and in a series of addresses on the youth justice system, the care and protection system and changes needed to improve child wellbeing. Waatea News interviewed Judge Becroft about his work as the Children's Commissioner. The Gisborne Herald spoke with Glenis Philip-Barbara, Assistant Maori Commissioner for Children, about her work.
In announcing Judge Eivers as the new Commissioner, Minister Sepuloni noted that
“The Office of the Children’s Commissioner is about to undergo significant change, with monitoring activities under the Oranga Tamariki Act transferring to the Independent Children’s Monitor. This will allow the Commissioner to focus entirely on the critical role of advocating for our tamariki and rangatahi."
In June, the government announced that the Independent Children’s Monitor (Te Mana Whakamaru Tamariki Motuhake) would become its own departmental agency within government and be hosted by the Education Review Office. It will be led by its own Chief Executive who will be a Statutory Officer. The September newsletter from the Independent Children's Monitor said "Work on the new legislation that will broaden the scope of the Monitor is in its final stages and we are hopeful that it will be introduced into Parliament by the end of the year." Outgoing Children's Commissioner Judge Becroft has questioned this approach and VOYCE – Whakarongo Mai has also criticised the decision.
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Ngāi Tahu whānau programme given $26m in move to 'shift the system', RNZ, 22.10.2021
Govt funds 'trailblazer' Ngāi Tahu programme to keep Māori kids out of state care, Stuff, 22.10.2021
What our child protection system should be doing, Newsroom, 21.10.2021
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Debbie Ngarewa-Packer: 'Minister lacked courage' on Oranga Tamariki, One News, 03.10.2021
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Using data from the 2019 New Zealand Family Violence Survey, University of Auckland researchers Ladan Hashemi, Janet Fanslow, Pauline Gulliver and Tracey McIntosh, looked at whether ACEs affected mental health, physical health and disability in adulthood. They found that adverse childhood experiences were associated with a higher risk of reporting poor mental health, chronic physical health conditions or disability in adulthood.
Adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) include physical abuse, emotional abuse, sexual abuse, witnessing intimate partner violence, household substance use, household mental illness, parental separation or divorce, and incarcerated household member.
The study found that the more ACEs a person reported, the more likely they were to report negative health outcomes and the less likely they were to report positive health outcomes in adulthood. For example, the prevalence of poor mental health was 47% for people who reported four or more ACEs, compared to 17.3% for people with no ACEs. The prevalence of disability was 30% for people with four or more ACEs, compared to 13.6% for people who reported no ACEs. The prevalence of positive mental health was lower for people who reported four or more ACEs, compared to people with no ACEs (62.1% vs 78.6% respectively).
Even when the researchers took into account socio-demographic factors, ACEs were still strongly associated with negative health outcomes. They noted that these results confirm other international research "...that ACEs are detrimental across all income groups." They go on to say that "Policy and programmes to address child poverty are important in their own right, but will not fully mitigate the effect of ACEs."
The researchers also examined positive childhood experiences, an under-researched area. They found that ACEs negatively impacted health even when people also reported positive childhood experiences. However, they note this area needs further research to explore the type and amount of positive childhood experiences that might mitigate negative impacts from ACEs.
The researchers conclude that the:
"Findings of this study indicate that increased investment in prevention and treatment is needed to mitigate the deleterious effects of ACEs on health. ACEs screening during standard physical and mental health care for adults could help clinicians identify those at risk of physical and mental health problems who may need extra support or trauma-informed services."
They also highlight that children may experience ACEs as a result of structural factors such as child poverty, discrimination, racism and colonisation, writing "...these are underlying issues that also need dismantling."
The article, Exploring the health burden of cumulative and specific adverse childhood experiences in New Zealand: Results from a population-based study, was published in the journal Child Abuse & Neglect.
See our news stories below for other articles based on the 2019 New Zealand Family Violence Survey.
Related news
The Adolescent Health Research Group has published a new brief that explores student feelings of safety and experiences of physical and sexual violence between 2001 and 2019. The Safety and Violence: Youth19 Brief summarises statistics on safety and violence from the Youth19 and previous Youth2000 surveys. It includes findings on violence by adults at home, being hit or physically harmed by others and unwanted sexual experiences, sexual violence or abuse.
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New Zealand belongs on 'international roll of shame' on children's wellbeing, Stuff, 22.10.2021
Service providers and researchers from Australia researched the impact of the pandemic on family violence advocate and worker wellbeing in the context of COVID-19 and identified key strategies to support staff. Based on this research, they developed best practice guidelines to support workplaces and supervisors to safeguard the wellbeing of practitioners working in remote settings, including working from home.
The Best Practice Guidelines: Supporting the Wellbeing of Family Violence Workers During Times of Emergency and Crisis are based on 4 key responses:
- Key Response 1: Set up remote workspaces in practitioners’ homes
- Key Response 2: Monitor and manage worker wellbeing
- Key Response 3: Communicate
- Key Response 4: Build a resilient family violence workforce.
For each area, the guide outlines specific actions for workplaces to take before, during and after crisis response to support workers and staff. Under key response area 2, focused on monitoring and managing worker wellbeing, the guidelines note:
"During times of crisis, it is crucial that organisations actively ‘check in’ with their workers. There are a number of strategies that organisations can utilise to support the mental health and wellbeing of their staff during periods of emergency including:
- Providing regular supervision dedicated to addressing the worker and their mental health and wellbeing
- Facilitating peer support and maintaining social connections among staff
- Encouraging breaks from work through access to leave."
The webinar, Responding to the Shadow Pandemic: Family Violence workforce wellbeing during COVID-19, explores the best practice guidelines. The guidelines are based on the research report When home becomes the workplace: family violence, practitioner wellbeing and remote service delivery during COVID-19 restrictions. This research is from the Monash Gender and Family Violence Prevention Centre in Australia as part of their wider research project on Gender-based violence and help-seeking behaviours during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Resources for individuals, managers and workplaces
Social Service Providers Aotearoa (SSPA) and ComVoices partnered with Umbrella Wellbeing to host a webinar on Strengthening Wellbeing in Times of Uncertainty with Zeenah Adam from Umbrella Wellbeing. SSPA has put together a summary of the webinar for kaimahi (workers and staff) across the non-government, Iwi social services and community sector in Aotearoa.
Ngā Pae o te Māramatanga recorded a number of COVID-19 Tautoko videos in 2020 to provide tautoko (support) to advisors, decision-makers, iwi, communities and whānau. The videos feature perspectives from Kaumātua and insights on noho ki te kainga (staying home).
Tuihana Ohia from the Centre for Social Impact developed Unu Ora - a series of brief meditations on health and wellbeing with a Te Ao Māori perspective. There are 5 Unu Ora in the series. Each Unu Ora offers a whakatauki to encourage reflection, and some questions and ideas to think about your wellbeing.
Kāhui Oranga, a collaborative health sector group, has a 6-part webinar series Leading for Wellbeing. The webinars include wellbeing through the eyes of Dame R. Naida Glavish, compassionate leadership and Ma pango, ma whero, ka oti te mahi! Our diversity is a strength, we require to succeed! featuring Rachel Prebble, Tofa Suafole-Gush and Chris King exploring their role as leaders in supporting diverse workforces.
Re: News featured a series of articles and videos on practical mindfulness tools with Te Ao Māori view using honest kōrero, humour and shared stories.
The Pasifika Medical Association, Pasifika Futures and Pacific Media Network collaborated to offer a brief weekly radio segment looking at conversations about mental health and wellbeing, called Ngalu Fānifo.
Whāraurau offers the free online course Self-care in Trauma-informed care organisations. While not specific to COVID-19 impacts, the course explains how trauma can affect people who support, protect and serve vulnerable children/tamariki and families and whānau. It offers practical steps to manage the impact of trauma and improve wellbeing.
The US-based National Resource Center on Domestic Violence (NRCDV) has produced three resources pulling together resources to support advocate and worker wellbeing, and community care and resilience:
TA Bundle: Community Care & Resilience (July 2021)
#Care4Advocates: COVID-19 Resources to Support Advocates’ Well-being (March 2020)
TA Bundle: Smiles for the Soul: The Advocate’s Scrapbook of Strength, Wisdom & Wellness (December 2019)
Update: The Sexual Violence Research Initiative (SVRI) has published We Care Evidence Review: Exploring research into how wellness and care can be institutionalised in the violence against women field in low- and middle-income countries (2021). It includes recommendations for institutional-level care and wellbeing strategies and advice specific to supporting workers during the covid-19 pandemic.
Update: The Growing Together: A Guide to Collective Care…and why self-care isn’t enough (October 2021) published by the New Naratif, is comic that highlights the difference between self care and community care, and shares an example for creating community care in an organisation.
Update: InsideOUT Kōaro and researchers from the University of Otago documented the development of a culture of care to support the wellbeing of Rainbow activists involved with InsideOUT Kōaro in the article Creating a culture of care to support rainbow activists’ well-being: an exemplar from Aotearoa | New Zealand (May 2022).
Update: USAID published How to Embed Self- and Collective Care in Organizations Addressing Gender-Based Violence (April 2022) which providers an overview and outlines principles to guide organisational actions to embed self-care and collective care.
Update: Safe and Equal, based in Australia, has created resources to support wellbeing for people who work in primary prevention of family violence. The 'How We Thrive' Video Series (2023) includes 4 brief videos and tip sheets. These resources are designed to help managers and organisational leaders understand what prevention practitioners need to feel supported and valued in their organisations, as well as helping prevention practitioners to advocate for their own projects and wellbeing.
General resources to support wellbeing for individuals and workplaces during COVID-19
All Right? has information for individuals, families and whānau in their campaign on Getting Through Together. They also have information on workplace wellbeing.
The Mental Health Foundation has information about wellbeing, parenting during COVID-19, grief and loss, suicide prevention, what to do if you’re having a hard time getting through and more helpful resources. For organisations see their resources for Workplace wellbeing during Covid-19.
Te Rau Ora and The Centre for Māori Suicide Prevention developed the Manaaki Ora app - a self-help wellbeing app to support individuals and whānau to know what to do if they’re concerned with someone’s mental or emotional wellbeing.
The Ministry of Health has an extensive list of tools and where to get help to support your own wellbeing and others during the covid-19 pandemic.
Background on systemic impacts to advocate and worker wellbeing
International research indicates that workers in family violence and sexual violence are continuing to experience sustained significant increased service demands and increased stresses. For more information see our COVID FAQ part 2: Addressing the impacts of COVID-19 under the heading What needs to be done in Aotearoa New Zealand? Also see international research listed under Further Reading on our Information for specialist family violence and sexual violence services webpage.
Tainui Stephens wrote about Kaupapa Fatigue as "...the toll extracted from people who were so dedicated to making the Māori world better." He writes:
"It’s in the nature of oppressed peoples to fight back. There are necessary roles for the strategist, the warrior, the diplomat, and many other types of advocates and workers. But being forever active in the frontline of Māori revival and growth comes with a price.
I’ve known many individuals who grew old before their time because of the energy they expended, and the risks they took with their health or their domestic happiness, all to be able to serve a vital kaupapa that uplifted the wellbeing of the people.
The fatigue from their efforts is chronic when it becomes continuous. To serve the entity we call “the people” requires more hours than exist in a day. No wonder Māui tried to slow down the sun."
In a research article Fiona Cram explores mahi aroha in times of crisis and the capacity of Māori to continue to offer mahi aroha noting:
"In times of crisis and adversity, Māori have stepped up to undertake paid and unpaid work within their communities. For many, this work is done out of a love for the people and a desire to see those who are most vulnerable in their community supported through times of difficulty and loss. Mahi aroha is underpinned by Māori values that also inform responsive adaptations to kawa and tikanga alongside the repurposing of workforces, resources and networks. Social media is widely used to support collective resiliency and inspire hope. Part of securing Māori capacity for mahi aroha into the future is the provision of homes for whānau that enable them to give effect to their love for people and their willingness to reach out and support others."
For more information see Sacha McMeeking, Helen Leahy and Catherine Savage's article An Indigenous self-determination social movement response to COVID-19 (2020).
The webinar, Is It Burn Out or Moral Injury, from the National Indigenous Women's Resource Center (US-based), explores how colonisation, historical trauma and racism contribute to systems and infrastructure which create moral injury for advocates and workers. For more information see moral injury resources for social work and community advocates from the The Shay Moral Injury Center at the US-based Volunteers of America.
Update: See this article Self-care for gender-based violence researchers – Beyond bubble baths and chocolate pralines (April 2022) for a discussion and review of self-care for GBV researchers, structural limitations and impacts on GBV researcher wellbeing, and recommendations focused on relational and collaborative ways of taking care of ourselves and each other.
Update: The article Self-Care: What’s Power Got to do With It? (May 2022) from the Sexual Violence Research Initiative (SVRI) blog explores structural and systemic factors including workplace norms, societal norms and power dynamics within organisations that influence self-care, highlighting that self-care does not look the same for everyone. Also see the related SVRI webinar Decolonising Wellness and Self-Care (May 2022).
Related media
The Waikato kaimahi kapa haka competition is connecting to a tool for healing, NZ Herald, 27.10.2023
Coping with ambiguity now Covid’s here to stay, Newsroom, 12.10.2021
Sometimes just a chat is enough, E-Tangata, 03.10.2021
Whaiora project - psychotherapy and Māori healing working together, Te Ao Māori News, 24.08.2021
NZ should learn from Māori resilience - Meng Foon, Te Ao Māori News, 09.08.2020
Consultation on draft Ministry for Ethnic Communities Strategy
The Ministry for Ethnic Communities is asking for feedback on their draft strategy.
The Ministry has identified four strategic priorities based on conversations with ethnic communities earlier this year. The draft strategy sets out a roadmap of actions to work towards those priorities. The Ministry is inviting feedback from ethnic communities and anyone with an interest in lifting the wellbeing of ethnic communities, including those who deliver services and support for ethnic communities.
You can give feedback through an online survey, by emailing the Ministry or participating in an online zoom session. See the Ministry's website for a list of dates and times for upcoming zoom sessions.
The closing date to give feedback is 5 November 2021.
The Ministry for Ethnic Communities is also consulting on the Former Refugees, Recent Migrants and Ethnic Communities Employment Action Plan.
Update: The Education and Workforce Committee opened an inquiry into migrant exploitation. The closing date for submissions is 3 February 2022. The inquiry will consider the frequency and scale of exploitation of migrant workers in New Zealand.
Consultation on the Pacific Languages Strategy
The Ministry for Pacific Peoples is asking for feedback on the draft Pacific Languages Strategy.
The Ministry has put together a draft Pacific Languages Strategy to help support an increase in the use of Pacific languages in Aotearoa. Data from Census 2013 compared to Census 2018 shows that the proportion of speakers of Pacific languages in Aotearoa has declined.
The draft strategy and feedback form are available in 9 Pacific Languages:
- Cook Islands Māori (Kūki ‘Āirani Māori)
- Fijian (Vosa Vakaviti)
- Kiribati (Te taetae ni Kiribati)
- Niue (Vagahau Niue)
- Rotuman (Fäeag Rotųam)
- Samoa (Gagana Samoa)
- Tokelau (Te Gagana Tokelau)
- Tonga (Lea Faka-Tonga)
- Tuvalu (Te Gana Tuvalu).
Minister for Pacific Peoples Aupito William Sio said:
“These are all language groups with diverse and different needs, strengths, and challenges, and each group deserves a tailored approach.
“I urge everyone in our Pacific communities to lead the shaping of these approaches by giving feedback on the Pacific Languages Strategy.
“Let’s talk about our languages and the best way to collaborate for their wellbeing, which is such a cornerstone for our overall wellbeing."
The closing date to give feedback is 12 November 2021.
Related media
Milestone launch of Pacific Languages Unit, Beehive media release, 27.11.2021
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