Labour’s Deputy Leader admits Party's shortcomings on Abuse Inquiry’s interim recommendations

Labour’s Deputy Leader admits the party did not do enough to integrate any recommendations from the Royal Commission into Abuse in Care’s interim report.

“We probably didn't do enough, but as I've said to others, no government has done enough over a period of decades, which is what has led to and allowed for the abuse to continue to happen.”

The party’s deputy leader, Carmel Sepuloni’s comments follow the release of the final report for the Royal Commision of Inquiry into Abuse in Care which was tabled in Parliament last week.

The report, weighing 14 kilograms, made 138 recommendations and included experiences from almost 3000 survivors, but only 5 per cent were Pacific.

Labelled as New Zealand’s most complex and longest inquiry, the final report was revealed after almost six years and three extended deadlines.

Speaking on 531pi Pacific Mornings, Sepuloni denied failure from Labour after it did not integrate any of the inquiry’s interim recommendations in late-2020.

“I think that there was so much that was being done over the course of the last six years and I don't have an excuse for it.”

Watch Sepuloni's full interview on Pacific Mornings

Pacific engagement lead for abuse in state-care survivor experiences, Thomas Tarurongo Wynne was in the Gallery when the report was presented in Parliament.

Wynne told William Terite on Pacific Mornings that the inquiry process could have had more thought around engagement.

“We had the opportunity and have had since we’ve engaged with the system to fix it so it does include us and so that it does work for us.”

Included in the final report was an acknowledgement that the inquiry process did not engage as much with many minority communities including Pacific women.

Pacific and Māori were also found to experience higher levels of physical abuse compared to other ethnicities.

Wynne said the findings revealthere’s a lot further to go than initially anticipated.

“Often people say things like, ‘the system’s broken’. I will actually push back on that. I always say, the system’s working very well for the people that built it. It works marvellously for them. It just wasn’t built for us.”

Watch Wynne's full interview of Pacific Mornings here

Children’s Minister and ACT MP Karen Chhour went through the state-care system herself and indicated the Government’s commitment to enforcing recommendations from the report.

“I think the weight’s been there the whole time since I walked through that door as Children’s Minister.

“I know the pain it causes when we get this wrong. I grew up watching it around me. I think that has been my driving force since day one.”

Chhour defended the Government’s military style academy for youth offenders which starts this week in Parlmerston North.

“What we are making sure of is that we have a safe environment where young people have an avenue to reach out if anything is happening to them.

“We have agencies that can show up to these facilities unannounced to make sure that nothing untoward is happening.”

Watch Chhour's full interview of Pacific Mornings here

Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has announced that a formal national apology to the victims of abuse in care will be made on the 12th of November.