Let this moment be our turning point for children

The Royal Commission of Inquiry into Historical Abuse in State Care and in the Care of Faith-based Institutions has publicly released its landmark report, Whanaketia – through pain and trauma, from darkness to light. I’m aware that the Methodist Church of New Zealand has been part of this Inquiry, including participation from Connexion members and in wider settings, such as at the church’s Wesley College.

As Chief Children’s Commissioner, I want to acknowledge the vast scale of the anguish, harm and  trauma of the abuse experienced by children and young people in state and faith-based care in our recent history. I know this has intergenerational impacts, and the ripples are continuing to be felt by thousands of survivors.

It’s impossible to take in the findings of the report without feeling an immense sense of sadness and regret for the pain suffered by those who should have been cherished as taonga.

I respect the deep courage of the survivors who have shared their experiences through the Inquiry, and express my sadness for those who could not, including those who died while in care, or before they were able to tell their stories.

Any abuse experienced by a child or young person creates lifelong and often intergenerational trauma. And despite this, children and young people are still continuing to be abused in homes, communities and in State care today. We must not only embrace this moment to face up to the reality of the past and the present, but we must choose to make it a turning point for our country, and the children and young people of today and tomorrow. It’s now up to every one of us to listen deeply to the life experiences and mamae of survivors, to support healing, act on their voices and solutions, and work together to build a safer future for all children and young people.

I know that the journey to come to this point in the Inquiry has not been easy, and that it’s highlighted deep pain and regret. For survivors, I am conscious that revisiting the most traumatic time of their lives might be the hardest thing they have ever done. Many lives were taken, and many lives could not reach their fullest potential. Many families have been broken, with relationships and a sense of belonging and identity taken away.

I commend your church leaders in fronting up to the abuse your history has been a part of. I’ve no doubt this is confronting, and yet it is essential to listen deeply, acknowledge, and understand. In the spirit of your faith, I acknowledge the spaces you have had to navigate through, as you’ve heard the traumatic stories of abuse from survivors, and continue to reflect on how contradicting these experiences are to the mission of Te Hahi Weteriana o Aotearoa.

As Chief Children’s Commissioner, I am very clear that the decades of abuse and pain experienced by generations of children and young people while in the care of the State and faith-based institutions is a national shame.

To be an effective independent advocate for and with children and young people – including those who are in the care of the State or who have been – I regularly listen to children and young people who want me, and the rest of our country, to understand that the State still needs to do better to  listen and acknowledge what matters to them, in order for healing to really begin. I have heard powerful calls to action from rangatahi abused in the care of the State more recently, and I amplify their calls. They want future generations to be free from the painful experiences they are living through. And I hope that our government, our faith leaders, our communities and all of us are able to honour the survivors of those abused in care by making the real, tangible change that is so much needed.

Although hope has been so severely dimmed through the abuse experienced, I believe that we can now choose to take a more hopeful path, towards whakamarama – enlightenment. An essential step we can and must take is to recognise the mana of every child in our country. I encourage everyone to take up any an opportunity to actively understand the rights of every child, and play your part in whatever way possible to create joy, love, and hope in the lives of the children and young people around you, supporting them to flourish to their full potential. And if you think a child is being harmed, don’t look away: listen to them, speak up, and act to make sure they are safe.

This report must not be seen as a one-off call to action. We need to be continuously working on this as a nation. It’s all of our responsibility to end the horrific abuse that is undeniably part of our recent history and our present, so we make Aotearoa New Zealand a safe, caring, and inclusive place to be a child.

The recommendations of this report are vast. This shows the breadth and depth of the efforts now needed from all of us for the children and young people of Aoteaora New Zealand, and especially our Māori, Pasifika, Rainbow and disabled children and young people.

This report calls for action, for healing and for justice. With the commitment of the Government to fulfil each and every one of the 138 recommendations, and the commitments across our Parliament to work together to make change, I hope to see systemic change. I encourage you to make real this change across your Connexion, to recognise the innate rights of all children and young people.

For me, the stark findings of the report and the ambition its recommendations hold for the future require a deeper commitment to children and young people’s rights and wellbeing that is above politics, above denominations of any one faith, and is central to the inherent dignity of all children, going to the very heart of the love and happiness that all children should grow up surrounded by. Let’s all be committed to change in our everyday lives.

Hold the hope for the Māori, Pasifika and Whaikaha congregations of your church. Create any opportunity to have young people at the forefront of your decision-making, and encourage them in all you do.

At Mana Mokopuna – Children and Young People’s Commission we have a moemoeā – a vision – and I know it will resonate with you, too. It’s ‘Kia kuru pounamu te rongo – all mokopuna live their best lives.’

We can make this real through a united community working together to build a kinder, more inclusive future. Let’s collectively create an Aotearoa New Zealand that is free of all forms of abuse, one where all children and young people are growing up loved, safe and well.

 

Dr Claire Achmad is Te Kaikōmihana Matua – Chief Children’s Commissioner. She leads Mana Mokopuna – Children and Young People’s Commission. Visit www.manamokopuna.org.nz.

She is a recognised advocate for children in Aotearoa New Zealand and internationally, having worked in a wide range of areas relating to children's rights, including from legal, policy and practice perspectives. She was appointed as the Deputy Chair of the Children and Young People's Commission from 01 July 2023, and from 01 November 2023 took up the role of Chief Children's Commissioner and Chair of the Commission.