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New report on victim | survivor experience with police responses
The Backbone Collective and Hohou te Rongo Kahukura have published a report that shares findings from a survey of 599 victim | survivors about their experiences with NZ Police responses to family violence, partner violence or sexual violence.
Their survey found that women, trans people and non-binary people reach out to police seeking urgent help to be safe, but "Overwhelmingly, they are not receiving what they need." While the report does document safe supportive responses from police, the majority of people shared how police involvement made them less safe and in some cases emboldened the abuser, often through police inaction. Trans and non-binary people, Māori and disabled people were more likely to experience poor responses from police.
Make it about us: Victim-survivors’ recommendations for building a safer police response to intimate partner violence, family violence and sexual violence in Aotearoa New Zealand (2024) is an in-depth report that shares the voices of victim | survivors with over 200 quotes from people who completed the survey. A brief summary of the report is also available.
In the foreword, contributing author Bex Fraser called the research landmark as the survey was intentionally trans inclusive. They write:
"This is a landmark change for non-binary and trans people. Where our experiences of reporting to police after violence are similar to those of women, we will be able to tell those stories. And where our experiences differ, we can start to understand why. If there are times when our genders are treated more respectfully than women are, we will be able to take a stance alongside women to advocate. And when there are times when we are treated worse, we will have allies alongside us, understanding that we need change, too."
The report explicitly examines differences in experiences between victim | survivor groups across every stage of contact with police, including whether or not to seek help from the police at all. This approach highlights that trans and non-binary people, Māori and disabled people are receiving significantly less respectful and helpful responses from police across most domains the researchers asked about.
Survey participants were between the ages of 16 and 80+ years, from a range of ethnicities (18% Māori, 5% Pasifika, 4% Asian, 61% Pākehā/NZ European, 14% ethnicities other). Participants included 523 women, 139 of whom identified as sexuality diverse (e.g. lesbian, asexual, bisexual, pansexual, Takatāpui); and 76 trans and non-binary people, including both transfeminine and transmasculine people. For the report, the Backbone sample refers to the 384 women who identified as heterosexual or did not disclose their sexual identity.
Many participants reported having at least one disability including 39% of women in the Backbone sample, 60% of sexuality diverse women and 78% of trans and non-binary people. Many participants had children, including 79% of women in the Backbone sample, 47% of sexuality diverse women and 29% of trans and non-binary people.
Participants were most likely to say that the person who hurt them and/or their children was a man. However, significant numbers of trans and non-binary people (27%) and sexuality diverse women (13%) said the person who abused or assaulted them was a woman. The report also highlights that:
"Importantly, the harmful and transphobic narrative that trans people, especially women, are more likely to be abusers was not supported by this research. No participants reported abuse from a trans woman."
Participants were asked what they hoped would happen to the person who abused or hurt them when they contacted police. Overwhelmingly they hoped the abuser would be kept away from them (62% of women in the Backbone sample, 54% of sexuality diverse women and 72% trans and non-binary people). Other significant hopes included hopes that police actions would stop the violence, hold the abuser accountable and get help for the abuser related to their use of violence. Of participants who had children, one quarter hoped their children would be safer by preventing contact with the abuser. There were variations by ethnicity. For example, despite being less likely to hope for arrest, wāhine Māori in the Backbone sample (37%) were more likely to say the abuser was arrested than non-Māori women in the Backbone sample(22%). The report includes further insights into differences related to the type of violence and relationship to the abuser.
Trans and non-binary people (37%), sexuality diverse women (28%) and women in the Backbone sample (15%) rated their first contact with NZ Police as very poor. Many participants said their first experience with police stopped them from contacting police again.
The research identified high levels of poor responses from police including little or no action, and harmful responses. For example the research found:
- 79% of trans and non-binary people, 63% of women in the Backbone sample, 60% of sexuality diverse women experienced bias or mistreatment from police (based on a range of factors but most often, because of being a victim-survivor and/or gender)
- disabled participants were three times more likely to be accused of being mentally unwell by police than non-disabled participants
- 44% of all participants said police minimised the violence and abuse and 30% said police took the side of the abuser
- only 24% of women in the Backbone sample, 28% of sexuality diverse women and 12% of trans and non-binary people said police understood family and sexual violence.
Trans and non-binary people, wāhine Māori and disabled people were far more likely to say the police treated them very poorly and far less likely to say police used helpful behaviours.
In particular, trans and non-binary reported experiencing significant overt homophobia and misgendering (referring to a trans person using an incorrect name, title or pronoun). Quotes from trans and non-binary participants shared examples of Police intentionally shaming them, laughing at them, referred to them with slurs, using the wrong pronouns after being corrected, and refusing to file reports, saying the sexual assault was what they deserved. The statistics and quotes from trans and non-binary participants highlight significant inconsistency in Police responses.
One in four women in the Backbone sample, 29% of sexuality diverse women and 51% of trans and non-binary people said police involvement made them less safe. Many participants also identified that their children were made less safe. They identified many ways in which police responses made them less safe. Poor police responses enabled the abuser to be more abusive:
"Victim-survivors described police responses that supported the abuser and resulted in violence and abuse escalating as the abuser saw they could get away with using violence and/or retaliated for police involvement. For many participants this was a result of police failing to take action in response to the violence and abuse including failing to arrest, prosecute, respond to breaches of orders, or discouraging victim-survivors from making a statement. In about a third of cases in both samples, abusers used police involvement to further harm the victim-survivor by taking revenge on them for contacting police or making out to police the victim-survivor was abusive/violent and presenting themselves as the victim, particularly for women in the Backbone sample."
Participants also identified how this had flow on effects to other parts of the violence response system. For example one third of women in the Backbone sample and 15% of the sexuality diverse women and trans and non-binary people said Family Court professionals now saw them as a trouble maker/making up the abuse/seeking revenge as a result of police involvement.
Participants also included 205 victim | survivors who had not had contact with police. A range of reasons affected their decision to not contact police including fears the police would treat them poorly, ashamed about what happened, fear it would make things worse, afraid the police wouldn't believe them and unsure if what happened was a crime. The report explores variations by type of violence, ethnicity, disability and more.
Some participants identified that police involvement made them feel a little or a lot safer: 39% of women in the Backbone sample and 37% of sexuality diverse women, but just 15% of trans and non-binary people. Helpful police actions included:
- listening to and believing victim | survivors
- acting swiftly
- arresting, charging, or removing the abuser, or issuing a Police Safety Order against the abuser
- providing information and referral to support services
- women officers trained in domestic violence being present
- ensuring safety of the victim | survivor and that of their children.
For participants who had children, "When children had positive interactions with police (calm, reassuring, friendly and kind communication, validating the child’s experiences, keeping the children informed and taking action to remove the abuser), children were more likely to trust police and have confidence in their ability to keep them safe."
Trans and non-binary people reported the lowest rates of help from police on nearly every option for ways that police could help. For example:
- Police put their safety first - 16% of trans and non-binary people, compared to 25% of women in the Backbone sample and 34% of sexuality diverse women
- Took the violence or abuse seriously - 24% of trans and non-binary people compared to 45% of women in the Backbone sample and 44% of sexuality diverse women.
Chapters 7 through 10 focus on improving the NZ Police response to family violence and sexual violence. This covers a wide range of responses and changes that victim | survivors want. This includes:
- police best practice
- police to meet the unique and diverse needs of victim-survivors
- independent advocates
- practical support police
- control of information sharing
- improving understanding and knowledge among police
- changes to institutional racism within police
- better responses to children
- respect for Takatāpui, trans and non-binary people
- police trained to understand and respond appropriately to sexuality diverse people
- police to take a rights-based approach for disabled people.
Pages 23 - 33 of report summary outlines key practical improvements that victim | survivors want in the police response. The reports makes 54 recommendations of actions to improve the police response to family violence and sexual violence in Aotearoa. The recommendations cover the following 5 calls for action:
- Honour the need for change
- Establish a specialist family violence police unit
- Create a victim-survivor-centred approach
- Establish specialist training for police
- Promote the importance of the right response every time.
Many of the recommendations and practical improvements identified by victim | survivors relate to the wider family violence and sexual violence particularly those that relate to addressing discrimination and bias, and creating a victim-survivor-centred approach.
The report concludes with the importance of centring the victim | survivor in police response, writing:
"Victim-survivors called police because they wanted the violence and abuse to stop; they were scared, they needed protection for themselves and/or their children and they wanted police to use their statutory powers to help make them safe."
For an overview of the report and comments from the report authors and advocates see The Post article When the frontline – and last resort – is a let down.
Related news
The 2023 NZ Police Briefing to the Incoming Minister, Mark Mitchell, proposed changes to the way NZ Police respond to family violence (referred to as family harm). The Briefing notes that police "...responding to social harm is displacing our focus on traditional visible policing" and "This is most clearly demonstrated by the continually increasing volume of family harm, mental health, and child protection calls, but also plays out in other areas like truancy, alcohol and drug abuse, and homelessness."
The Briefing identified 4 key opportunities to improve Police outcomes including:
“Supporting Police to re-focus on our core business and away from ‘expanded’ activities, particularly in the social domain, by supporting managed withdrawal and advocating for that role to be filled by others. For example, reducing Police’s role in mental health crisis response is a clear opportunity, as is right sizing our response to family harm.” (see page 9)
The Briefing also outlined a six-month proof of concept (POC) that ended in June 2023 aimed at improving response rates for “...non-urgent (priority two and below) family harm events.” The POC trialled a phone-based triage service to “...provide timely risk assessment of further harm and help identify the appropriate support required.”
The report, Family Harm Non-Emergency Triage (FHNT) evaluation report: September 2023, from the New Zealand Evidence Based Policing Centre shares findings from the POC evaluation. The report has not been publicly released. Seema Kotecha, Manager Family Harm Prevention at Police National Headquarters shared findings from the report and details about the new phone triage system in the April 2024 Systems Working Group meeting. For more information about the Systems Working Group, contact Te Puna Aonui at relationships@tepunaaonui.govt.nz.
Following the publication of the Police BIM, a number of sector advocates raised concerns about the possibility of Police reducing their role in responding to family violence call outs.
In comments made to RNZ, Women's Refuge chief executive Ang Jury said that "People don't invite police around just because they feel like a visit. They invite them around because they're scared." Jury also raised concerns about plans to extend the phone-based triaging service, commenting that "Family violence victims, will often underplay what it is that's happening for a variety of reasons and they may not necessarily be providing enough information for that call taker to triage effectively".
In a media statement responding to the release of the Police BIM, Dr Bonnie Robinson, CEO Presbyterian Support Northern which provides Shine family violence response service, said:
“Police are the only agency that has the authority to arrest and detain someone or de-escalate the situation and so potentially, they help protect children at the address as well.
Family violence is a huge issue for New Zealand and it’s important that we as a society address it effectively.
It’s difficult to see how the role of the Police could be filled by others as the Police suggest. Family violence happens 24/7 all year round. We can’t think of any other service that can fill that Police function without substantial investment and training. Let’s not forget, some women lose their lives to family violence every year. By being on the scene, Police are best placed to react, especially if they know how long the situation has been going on for or past history of the address.”
Legal academics Julie Tolmie and Carrie Leonetti have also raised concerns. See further commentary in the related media below.
Related research
To further explore victim | survivors experiences with police responses and help seeking, see the following resources:
- Victim-survivor feedback on the government's National Strategy and Action Plan to Eliminate Family Violence and Sexual Violence: summary of engagement processes (2022) by The Backbone Collective
- Victim-survivor perspectives on longer-term support after experiencing violence and abuse (2020) by The Backbone Collective
- Counting ourselves: the health and wellbeing of trans and non-binary people in Aotearoa New Zealand (2019) from the Transgender Health Research Lab at the University of Waikato
- Factors influencing help-seeking by those who have experienced intimate partner violence: results from a New Zealand population-based study (2021) by Zarintaj Malihi, Janet Fanslow, Ladan Hashemi, Pauline Gulliver, and Tracey McIntosh
- Seeking of help and support after experiencing sexual harm: considerations for cisgender women, cisgender men and gender-diverse people (2022) by Tess Patterson, Linda Hobbs, Gareth Treharne, and Melanie Beres
- Controlling behaviours and help-seeking for family violence (2023) and Patterns of victimisation by family members and help-seeking by victims (2022) from the Ministry of Justice using data from the New Zealand Crime and Victim Survey.
Update: Researchers from AUT published new research that explored the role of police in responding to mental distress in Aotearoa. The project gathered diverse stories of encounters with the police. The researchers also talked to police and spent time with frontline police officers to learn about their experiences of responding to mental health-related incidents. They have published 2 reports. The first one details the research findings and recommendations for change. The second report is a collection of whānau/citizen stories. Find more information and reports on the project website. Also see The Conversation article Police are frustrated with mental health callouts – here’s how to reduce their involvement and improve support from Katey Thom, one of the researchers.
Related media
Police minister can’t promise no more lives lost with policing changes, Stuff, 27.07.2024
Human Rights Review Tribunal orders police to pay sexual assault complainant $50,000, NZ Herald, 06.05.2024 (see the Human Rights Review Tribunal decision
New report compiles decades of contemporary mātauranga on violence
Violence within whānau and mahi tūkino – A litany of sound revisited (2023) is a comprehensive literature review by Professor Denise Wilson (Tainui, Ngāti Porou ki Harataunga, Whakatōhea, Ngāti Oneone, Ngāti Tūwharetoa).
It gathers decades of contemporary mātauranga from Māori researchers into one place. It is designed as a reference resource for rōpū, kaimahi Māori, Māori communities and whānau, and as a roadmap for systemic change towards toiora. While the book is comprehensive, Professor Wilson says it "doesn’t have to be read from cover to cover", but is instead designed to be “a ‘pick up and put down’ pukapuka”.
We will be hosting a webinar to share the findings from the review and continue the kōrero and whakaaro from the report on 22 May 2024 with author Denise Wilson and Poata Watene (Waikato Tainui, Ngāi Te Rangi), Ngarongo Eaton (Ngā Ariki Kaiputahi, Whakatōhea, Tūhoe) and Te Whetu Mairangi (Whetu Horo) Balzer-Horo (Ngāpuhi, Te Arawa, Taranaki, Ngāti Porou). See details below or register to attend the free webinar.
In the report summary, she writes:
“Eliminating violence and mahi tūkino affecting whānau Māori must be a collective effort led by Māori. Addressing the contextual, historical and social conditions must underpin such an effort that enables the persistence of intergenerational violence and trauma within whānau Māori.”
She believes the book “...is all about hope, and aspirations for what we can be again, over time.”
The literature review explored 6 questions (p1):
- How were whānau and hapū kept violence-free before colonisation? (Preface)
- What is violence within whānau and mahi tūkino? (Chapter 1)
- What is the contemporary landscape of violence impacting whānau Māori? (Chapters 2, 3 and 4)
- What is known about how to achieve wellbeing? (Chapter 5)
- What is known about Māori approaches and solutions? (Chapter 6)
- What are the evidential gaps? (Chapter 6)
The Preface explains “how whānau and hapū remained violence-free in traditional Māori society pre-settlement and pre-colonisation.” It recommends a return to Māori led solutions: “Solutions to violence within whānau and mahi tūkino lie within te ao Māori in mātauranga such as whakapapa kōrero and pūrākau tawhito.”
Chapter 1 describes whakapapa as central to understanding violence, toiora and whānau: "any violation, whether physical, psychological, emotional, spirtual or sexual, directly impacts whakapapa." It explains the understandings and terms used in the report. For example, the term ‘violence within whānau’ is used instead of ‘family violence’ or ‘whānau violence’. The report notes that “...family violence disregards the many layers of intergenerational and contemporary burdens impacting whānau Māori...” while ‘whānau violence’ “...focuses readers’ attention on the whānau and risks blaming individuals and whānau for the existence of violence within their lives.” The report outlines the impact on whānau of violence outside whānau control, including:
“...the role of colonisation; intergenerational and historical trauma and violence; ongoing social, political, systemic and structural factors; and intersectionality and the multiple forms of oppression. Social issues like social marginalisation, racism, housing and income insecurity, and poverty also challenge many whānau.”
Chapters 2, 3 and 4 describe the contemporary landscape of violence impacting whānau Māori. Chapter 2 explores who is affected by violence and how. Chapter 3 explores the context of that violence, including oppression and marginalisation, Crown breaches of Te Tiriti and failures to protect Māori, and intergenerational trauma. Chapter 4 explores the ongoing impacts of colonisation, structural and institutional racism, and historical and intergenerational trauma.
Chapter 5 describes the many structural and systemic barriers to healing and wellbeing “such as the ongoing institutional failure and systemic entrapment to achieve wellbeing for whānau.” It then explains why Māori led approaches are neccessary to enable moving towards toiora.
Chapter 6 briefly highlights several Māori approaches and solutions for preventing and healing from violence, explores different frameworks for measuring flourishing whānau, and explains the the concept of and need for cultural intelligence. Finally it highlights several areas of focus for future work:
- "Māori designed and led approaches and solutions for prevention and healing
- Tangata whenua education and resources to support the mahi and whānau
- Workforce development within tangata whenua providers of services for whānau with violence and mahi tūkino, and
- Monitoring and reviewing tools enable measuring whānau strengths and growth rather than focusing on deficits and problems.”
Violence within whānau and mahi tūkino – A litany of sound revisited was commissioned by Te Pūkotahitanga to inform their activities. The report revisits and expands on the earlier unpublished report “A litany of sound: Māori insights into Family Violence and Sexual Violence” commissioned for the Interim Te Rōpū in 2019.
Te Pūkotahitanga is the independent ministerial advisory group to the Minister for the Prevention of Family Violence and Sexual Violence. Te Pūkotahitanga shared their Briefing to the Incoming Minister in February 2024.
Related webinar
Professor Denise Wilson along with Poata Watene, Ngarongo Eaton and Te Whetu Mairangi (Whetu Horo) Balzer-Horo will share reflections from research and practice, building on the kōrero of Violence within Whānau and Mahi Tūkino — A Litany of Sound Revisited, in a webinar on 22 May 2024. The speakers will share kōrero based on: 1) past evidence and learnings, 2) present insights and issues alongside 3) future dreams and aspirations from the next generation. Their kōrero blends research with real life expertise and solutions from out in the field at the flaxroots, from Māori kaimahi perspectives working in family violence and sexual violence in the community. Sign language interpretation will be provided in the webinar. Sign-up to attend the free webinar.
Related research
Violence within whānau and mahi tūkino – A litany of sound revisited sits alongside He Waka Eke Noa in establishing an evidence base for understanding and addressing violence. The final report from the He Waka Eke Noa project hosted by Tū Tama Wāhine o Taranaki was released in 2023: He Waka Eke Noa: Māori Cultural Frameworks for Violence Prevention and Intervention. He Waka Eke Noa is a groundbreaking Kaupapa Māori project. It is the first comprehensive study of violence centring the experience and expertise of Māori. It is presented in two main parts: whakawhiti kōrero from interviews and hui; and a national survey, which is the first to focus on Māori experiences of violence. Together they confirm the violence of colonising systems and structures, the ways the State harms Māori people and systems, and the potential of tikanga for collective safety and wellbeing. You can watch presentations from the 2023 He Waka Eke Noa seminar series, and earlier presentations. One of He Waka Eke Noa researchers, Professor Leonie Pihama spoke at the Treaty Based Futures and Anti-Racism 2024 online speaker series on He Waka Eke Noa: The Role of the State in Perpetuating Violence on Māori in March 2024.
Australia’s National Research Organisation for Women’s Safety (ANROWS) has recently published the report What works? A qualitative exploration of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander healing programs that respond to family violence (2024). The report provides findings from a project that explored what works in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander healing programs from the perspectives of the people who deliver, use and are impacted by the programs. The research also looked at the availability of healing programs for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander LGBTQIASB+ people and those with a disability. The project was Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander led and guided by Indigenous-centred research methodologies and qualitative research design. This is the second report from the project. The first report, published 2021 was a literature review: What works? Exploring the literature on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander healing programs that respond to family violence.
Related media
Online wananga for family violence plan, Waatea News, 22.05.2024
We need a collective approach to safeguard whānau from violence, The Post, 17.03.2024
Professor examines ‘difficult’ topic, AUT University news, 12.03.2024
Pukapuka offers pointed to Māori-led violence response, Waatea News, 11.03.2024
New book explores roots of family violence, Te Ao Māori news, 10.03.2024
Denise Wilson on new book: Solutions to Māori family violence must be holistic, RNZ, 10.03.2024
Māori literature may hold solutions to tackling family and sexual violence, NZ Herald, 06.03.2024
Constitutional transformation talks and resources
Te Aorerekura identifies that "Violence that impacts whānau is rooted in the marginalisation of tangata whenua and societal changes enforced during the colonisation of Aotearoa." Te Kāhui Tika Tangata | Human Rights Commission, along with tangata whenua, researchers and advocates have repeatedly identified that colonisation, racism and white supremacy continue to have profound impacts on tangata whenua and many other communities in Aotearoa.
The authors of Puao-te-ata-tu (1988) made clear that colonisation and state systems are a source of violence for Māori, and that the solution for ending violence and promoting toiora whānau must involve redefining the relationship between the Crown and tangata whenua. This has been supported by countless studies and reviews, including Moana Jackson’s He Whaipaanga Hou (1987), Ani Mikaere’s The Balance Destroyed (1995, 2017), the recently published He Waka Eke Noa: Māori cultural frameworks for violence prevention and intervention (2023) and Violence within whānau and mahi tūkino – A litany of sound revisited (2023).
Te Kāhui Tika Tangata | Human Rights Commission's Maranga Mai! report "...explains that to be free of discrimination and to determine their own future, tangata whenua want tino rangatiratanga under Te Tiriti restored, as well as their indigenous rights under the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP)."
Margaret Mutu (Ngāti Kahu, Te Rarawa, Ngāti Whātua) talks about how the path to self-determination (tino rangatiratanga) for Māori in Aotearoa requires constitutional transformation. She writes:
"The colonisation of this country by the British was illegitimate and illegal, and it’s done huge damage. That has to be fixed. It’s no good trying to just tweak things at the edges because there is a fundamental underlying problem, which is our constitutional arrangements.
The first thing we need to do is for everyone to take part in a long and meaningful conversation about what is needed to ensure that balance is restored in the country. Not just lawyers or experts, but everyone.
Balance would mean an environment where Māori are fully recognised and respected as mana whenua and the original peoples of this country; where tikanga, mātauranga, He Whakaputanga and Te Tiriti are all a natural part of the agreed order of this country and nobody thinks that it is odd or somehow wrong.
It would mean that hapū and iwi, our fundamental social constructs within the Māori world, can exercise their own mana and make their own decisions about their own lives and their own resources.
All people would have a respected constitutional place in our country, and all people would know what that respected place is in this country. We would have constitutional arrangements based on tikanga, He Whakaputanga, Te Tiriti, and an agreed set of values for good, just, and participatory government for and by all peoples that benefits everyone."
The 7th report of the Family Violence Death Review Committee (2022) outlines how efforts to uphold Te Tiriti o Waitangi can contribute to wellbeing and safety for everyone, writing that "By upholding the rights and basic dignities of everyone in Aotearoa, we can take collective action to address the foundation of family violence."
The recommendations of Puao-te-ata-tu and the many other reports and tangata whenua voices continue to inform kaimahi working towards better futures, and can be seen in many of the examples below.
Kōrero with Margaret Mutu
Te Wāhi Wāhine o Tāmaki Makaurau | the Auckland Women's Centre hosted a Kōrero with Margaret Mutu, interviewed by broadcaster Moana Maniapoto (Ngāti Tūwharetoa, Tūhourangi, Ngāti Pikiao). Margaret's kōrero covered a wide range of issues including:
- Rangatiratanga
- He Whakaputanga o te Rangatiratanga o Nu Tirene: the Declaration of Independence of the United Tribes of New Zealand
- Te Tiriti o Waitangi and the ACT party's treaty principles bill
- Waitangi Tribunal, treaty settlements and addressing inequities
- Constitutional transformation and visions for the future
- Matike Mai.
A summary of Margaret's talk is also available.
Professor Margaret Mutu was the Working Group Chair of Matike Mai Aotearoa, and Moana Jackson (Ngāti Kahungunu, Ngāti Porou) was the Convenor. Matike Mai Aotearoa, the Independent Working Group on Constitutional Transformation, was first promoted at a meeting of the Iwi Chairs Forum in 2010. The Chairperson and Convenor facilitated 252 hui between 2012 and 2015. Findings were published in He whakaaro here whakaumu mō Aotearoa: the report of Matike Mai Aotearoa - the independent working group on constitutional transformation (2016). This work and kōrero has continued through the Māori Constitutional Convention 2021, Constitutional Kōrero 2022, the Power in Our Truth Conference 2023, the recent Designing Our Constitution 2024 and many other forums.
To learn more and get involved, see the new Matike Mai Aotearoa website launched in February 2024 to support understanding and dialogue about constitutional transformation in Aotearoa. Also see:
- Margaret Mutu: Why we need constitutional transformation (2022) by Margaret Mutu in E-Tangata
- Moana Jackson: ‘I’m absolutely sure transformation is coming’ (2022) by Moana Jackson in E-Tangata
- Portrait of a Quiet Revolutionary (2022), documentary about Moana Jackson
- The Treaty Claims Settlement Process in New Zealand and Its Impact on Māori (2019) by Margaret Mutu.
Speech from UN Special Rapporteur on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples
The UN Special Rapporteur on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples visited Aotearoa in April 2024. He spoke at the Designing Our Constitution 2024 conference about how constitutions can be instrumental in protecting Indigenous Peoples' rights and cultures. You can watch and read his speech "Constitutional reform and the importance of harmonization with international treaties: cases of successes and reforms on Indigenous Peoples" (2024).
Recordings from Designing Our Constitution 2024 conference
The Conference was hosted by the University of Auckland’s Centre for Indigenous Peoples and the Law, Te Kāhui Tika Tangata Human Rights Commission and National Iwi Chairs Forum. Learn more about the conference and how it paves the way for conversations about inclusive, te Tiriti-based constitution from Te Kāhui Tika Tangata | Human Rights Commission. Recordings from the Designing Our Constitution 2024 conference are available online.
Recordings from Te Tiriti Based Futures & Anti Racism
Te Tiriti-based futures + Anti-racism is an innovative (inter)national, online and offline, Te Tiriti-based, anti-racism and decolonisation event in Aotearoa. The event has taken place in 2020, 2022 and recently in March 2024. The event hosts a range of speakers covering institutional racism and anti-racism, decolonisation, building Te Tiriti-based futures and transforming our constitution. You can watch recordings from the talks online. Talks from 2024 included He Whakaputanga o Te Rangatiratanga o Nū Tīreni webinar, Matike Mai – Planning for constitutional transformation webinar, Indigenous sexuality and colonial Ideologies webinar, He Waka Eke Noa: The Role of the State in perpetuating Violence on Māori webinar and much more.
Related news
The National Iwi Chairs Forum withdrew from the working group on the National Action Plan Against Racism in April 2024. In announcing their withdrawl, Tangata Whenua caucus member Tina Ngata said:
"Our government has signalled changes to the plan, including a reduced focus on institutional racism and colonial racism against Māori, which would render the plan pointless as all instances of personal racism result from the institutional racism of our society."
Tina Ngata discussed in detail why the National Iwi Chairs Forum walked away from the National Action Plan Against Racism in an article for E-Tangata. See related media below for more information including response from Justice Minister Paul Goldsmith. See the Ministry of Justice for more information about the work to develop a National Action Plan Against Racism.
The Disinformation Project published research in October 2023 highlighting that disinformation is contributing to a rise in anti-Māori racism and exposure to white supremacist beliefs in Aotearoa New Zealand. Listen to an interview about the research with Kate Hannah, Disinformation Project Director.
Te Kāhui Tika Tangata | Human Rights Commission published 2 reports in February 2023:
- Ki te whaiao, ki te ao Mārama, a community engagement report for developing a National Action Plan Against Racism
- Maranga Mai!, a report into the dynamics and impacts of colonisation, racism and white supremacy upon tangata whenua.
The United Nations Human Rights Council is currently conducting Aotearoa New Zealand's 4th Universal Periodic Review of human rights. The Draft Outcome Report was published on 3 May 2024. A final country report is due on 17 May 2024.
Related media
World shines a light on NZ’s human rights breaches, Newsroom, 07.05.2024
Ngāhuia Murphy: The mana and mātauranga of wāhine Māori, E-Tangata, 05.05.2024
Justice Minister updates UN on law & order plan, Beehive media release, 30.04.2024
Why did the Iwi Chairs Forum walk out on the national anti-racism plan?, NZ Herald, 08.04.2024
Claire Charters: Let’s imagine a new constitution, E-Tangata, 07.04.2024
Designing a constitution for Aotearoa, Te Ao Māori News, 04.04.2024
Māori power probed in constitution hui, Waatea News, 03.04.2024
UN rapporteur call for inputs
The UN Special Rapporteur on the sale, sexual exploitation and sexual abuse of children has issued a call for inputs on existing and emerging sexually exploitative practices against children in the digital environment.
The closing date to submit is 15 May 2024.
Submissions are limited to 3000 words. Supporting materials, such as reports, academic studies, and other background materials can be added to the submission as an annex.
Submissions can be made by children, schools, communities, hapori, non-government organisations, academics, lawyers, policy experts, human rights institutions, States, UN agencies and other relevant stakeholders.
This is a thematic report that will be submitted to the UN General Assembly. For the report, the UN Rapporteur is focusing on:
- existing and emerging sexually exploitative practices and abuse against children in the digital environment
- the role of Artificial Intelligence in facilitating sexual exploitation and sexual abuse of children
- how states and other child protection stakeholders including the technology industry can respond to this problem.
The call for inputs note that this report will build on the previous Special Rapporteur's 2014 Report of the Special Rapporteur on the sale of children, child prostitution and child pornography (A/HRC/28/56). This report identified emerging issues from technology at that time. The call for inputs notes that a recent review of research and reports:
"...revealed a recent boom and intensification of manifestations of harm and exposure of online child sexual abuse and exploitation, both in terms of scale and method. The technological potential and current application of “generative Artificial Intelligence” to commit acts of abuse and exploitation contributes to this development."
The Rapporteur has outlined 9 questions she is seeking input on:
- "Please provide information on how technologies are used to facilitate the sexual exploitation and abuse of children.
- What practical recommendations would you propose for States, the technology industry and online service providers to prevent the sexual exploitation and abuse of children in the digital environment?
- What are the remaining gaps that limit the effective implementation and application of existing laws, policies and guidelines to prevent, detect, report and protect children from sexual exploitation and sexual abuse online?
- What are the challenges that exist in the use of these digital technologies, products or services, that inhibit the work of law enforcement across jurisdictions in their work to investigate, detect, remove child sexual abuse materials online and prosecute these crimes?
- What technical and regulatory measures can be put in place by States, the technology industry and online service providers (legislative, regulatory, administrative, institutional and others) towards mitigating human rights risks associated of online child sexual exploitation and abuse, and ensuring the minimum harmonization across legal jurisdictions?
- Are there any other practical examples of internal monitoring, complaint and reporting processes; establishment of regulatory bodies and interventions; remedial pathways; robust safeguarding procedures; children’s rights’ due diligence and risk assessments; and technical standard-setting processes to ensure safety and inclusivity by design?
- In the case of generative Artificial Intelligence and end-to-end encryption, what are the challenges and recommended mitigation measures, including the application of advanced technology needed by technology companies, online service providers and law enforcement to prevent by blocking the sharing and removal of CSAM?
- Are there any examples of proactive measures taken to facilitate consultation and participation with a broad range of stakeholders, including children and child-rights organisations, for informing policy and legislation, setting technical standards and implementing processes to eradicate child sexual abuse and exploitation in the digital environment?
- What kind of mechanism could be put in place to best support and coordinate the joint public and private industry participation at the international level on existing and emerging threats that digital technologies pose to children in order to ensure harmonisation and mainstreaming across domestic and regional efforts when combatting this phenomenon?"
Find more details on making a submission on the call for inputs.
Read more about the UN Rapporteur's concerns in her February 2024 media release UN expert alarmed by new emerging exploitative practices of online child sexual abuse.
Related research and information
Aotearoa research and information
The Child Youth and Wellbeing Strategy outlines Work to prevent online child sexual exploitation and abuse in Aotearoa.
The Digital Child Exploitation Team at Te Tari Taiwhenua | Department of Internal Affairs (DIA) is responsible for responding to and preventing the spread of child sexual exploitation material. Learn more from DIA on Preventing Online Child Sexual Exploitation about what child exploitation material is, how Aotearoa responds, legislation and legal processes, prevention and reporting. Also see research from DIA's Digital Child Exploitation Team including the Online Safety Experience Review (2022).
DIA has also published Terminology recommendations for combatting child sexual exploitation (2022) from the Combatting Child Sexual Exploitation Group. DIA has published Support for whānau, families and friends for non-offending partners and family members impacted by a child sexual exploitation investigation.
ECPAT Child Alert Trust (ECPAT NZ) leads and participates in national and international activities that identify, prevent, and address commercial sexual exploitation of children. ECPAT publishes and is working on Aotearoa specific data and research on child sexual exploitation. For example see their publications:
- Update report on commercial exploitation of children - Aotearoa New Zealand: digital exploitation focus July 2022
- Sexual exploitation of boys: a global review of existing literature on the sexual exploitation of boys (2021).
Other Aotearoa research:
- Designing effective digital advertisements to prevent online consumption of child sexual exploitation material (2020) by Claire Henry
- Child exploitation literature scan: extended review (2023) from Oranga Tamariki.
International research
Recent research from Australia has identified recent trends in child sexual exploitation. For example see:
- Production and distribution of child sexual abuse material by parental figures (2021) from the Australian Institute of Criminology
- Crime & justice research 2022: online sexual exploitation of children from the Australian Institute of Criminology
- “You feel like you did something so wrong ”: women's experiences of a loved one's child sexual abuse material offending (2023) by Michael Salter, Delanie Woodlock and Christian Jones
- “Talk to strangers!”: Omegle and the political economy of technology-facilitated child sexual exploitation (2024) by Michael Salter and Saranda Sokolov
- Parental Production of Child Sexual Abuse Material: A Critical Review (2023) by Michael Salter and Tim Wong
- “Someone who has been in my shoes” : the effectiveness of a peer support model for providing support to partners, family and friends of child sexual abuse material offenders (2022) by Christian Jones, Michael Salter and Delanie Woodlock; also see the related Evaluation of PartnerSPEAK (2021), an Australian organisation that supports the non-offending partners, family and friends of child sexual abuse material offenders
- How to implement online warnings to prevent the use of child sexual abuse material (2023) from the Australian Institute of Criminology.
Research from other countries is exploring similar trends. For example:
- Global Threat Assessment 2023: Assessing the scale and scope of child sexual abuse online
- National analysis of police-recorded child sexual abuse & exploitation (CSAE) crimes report: January 2022 to December 2022 drawing on data from England and Wales
- Perceptions of frontline welfare workers on the sexual exploitation of children in the Pacific (2019) published by ECPAT International
Related news
An April 2024 NZ Police media release highlighted increasing reports of sexually explicit content involving children online and in private messages. It notes that "New Zealand agencies who work in this field - including DIA, Customs and Police - received 19,865 referrals in 2023, up from just over 15,000 in 2022." These are referrals from the US National Centre for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) who receives notifications from members of the public and organisations such as social media sites about sexually explicit content involving children, including child sexual abuse images on social media platforms and sent via private messages.
Te Tari Taiwhenua | Department of Internal Affairs (DIA) have published the report, Summary of Submissions: Safer Online Services and Media Platforms (2024). The report summarises the key themes from submissions to the Safer Online Services and Media Platforms consultation. See our previous news story for more information on the consultation.
In May 2024, Media reported that the Department of Internal Affairs will not be progressing with the Safer Online Services and Media Platforms programme.
Related media
Ending Big Tech’s Child Exploitation, Compact, 07.06.2024
Government swerves away from tackling online ‘industrial-grade’ violence, The Post, 12.05.2024
International child protection unit at Oranga Tamariki to be slashed, Newshub, 01.05.2024
Digital safety, anti-money laundering jobs in cut proposal, The Post, 22.04.2024
More frontline cuts as Government goes soft on organised crime, PSA media release, 22.04.2024
Law needs to keep up with AI child abuse: experts, The Press, 18.01.2024
The New Zealand Family Violence Clearinghouse (NZFVC) is your national centre for research and information on violence.
Fill out the NZFVC 2024 survey
Our purpose is to provide access to high quality research and information on violence including family violence, sexual violence and other forms of violence. We aim to provide equitable access to research and information that can inform policy and practice to support our collective efforts to prevent and respond to violence in Aotearoa. This includes drawing on both western and Māori knowledge systems as well as practice informed evidence.
Being able to demonstrate that what we do at the NZFVC is making a difference is really important.
We would like to know what is working well and how we could improve or do things differently. We really appreciate your support in giving us your feedback.
Related news
Te Puna Aonui in partnership with ACC will soon invite people to complete the Agents of Change survey – understanding the Workforce and Primary Prevention Sector. The survey will gather information about who is working in the sector and how the workforce could be strengthened. The survey is designed for Agents of Change in the family violence and sexual violence sectors — this means anyone who works or volunteers in a role where they contribute to the wellbeing of, or prevent harm to, other people. The survey is not live yet. For questions, contact Te Puna Aonui relationships@tepunaaonui.govt.nz.
Report explores the needs of children and young people affected by family violence
The report, Evaluation of Kōkihi ngā Rito – Women’s Refuge’s Child Advocacy Pilot (2023), shares findings from an evaluation of Kōkihi ngā Rito (KNR), a family violence service designed specifically for children ages 5 to 12 years. The report looks at what leads to sustainable and meaningful safety for children affected by family violence. The research centred children and focused on children's own views about their safety, supported by insights from mothers and advocates working with the children.
The evaluation found that despite significant risks and impacts from violence, children who received the specialised support were safer with 85% of the children reporting they felt safer from harm and 85% reporting they felt their wellbeing improved. The authors note:
"KNR tamariki were almost always put at risk by biological fathers who utilised statutory mechanisms to retain access to them, and who as a result had continuous opportunities to use violence against them and their Mums. Yet as a result of their engagement with KNR, they were kept safe from homicide, and, in the main, from further direct assaults. In addition, their feedback showed that KNR meant they suffered fewer losses, less psychological abuse, and less harm than they would have without KNR."
The report includes more information about risks and safety outcomes for the children. This includes risk data and comments from the children in KNR.
The research also took an in-depth look at what supported safety. The report highlights some essential elements of child advocacy. This includes centring the child by 1) considering the way family violence risk specifically impacts children, 2) continually assessing this risk and responding to how the risk changes, and 3) working to disrupt the impacts of family violence to reverse adverse outcomes and improve tangible safety. The report notes that "Tamariki were made safer through advocacy that was specific to them as tamariki, focused solely on family violence, and supported their Mums and whānau as a crucial component of supporting them."
Key elements of the advocacy work involved:
- professional support specifically for the child
- whanaungatanga and relationship building which enabled children to disclose risks that may have been unknown to their mothers or services
- child led, including safety plans that were tailored to the children
- flexible, reliable and open-ended (as long as children want and need) support that meant children were better heard and understood by other parts of the systems they were involved with
- both children and mothers could access a wider range of support and resources when they most needed them
- the relationship between children and their mothers mutually benefitted from the mutual recovery and capacity-generating work of the advocates.
Children and their mothers identified a key difference was that the programme offered specialist support that was both for children and about safety from family violence. The report highlights that children did their own safety work, and also "...perceived their relationships with Mums to be a fundamental facilitator of their past, present, and future safety." In particular, the research identified that the interdependence of the child and mother's relationship was "...one of the primary imperatives of effective advocacy for tamariki - supporting and unburdening Mums so they have as much capacity as possible to support their kids."
The research also identified that perpetrators had the most control over risks to the children and "There was seldom evidence of institutional accountability for fathers' violence". Further, children's safety was heavily impacted by the responsiveness of organisations, institutions and systems.
The research also identified that systemic barriers undermined safety:
"Children’s (and Mums’) reflections on how risk and advocacy evolved in tandem demonstrate how long-term engagement nurtured, fortified, and sustained structures of safety around each tamaiti, the benefits of which outlasted the pilot itself. However, the data from kids, Mums, and KT also reveal the limitations of how effective KNR can be while the safety of tamariki is actively undermined by more powerful systems."
The report identified 5 systems barriers that further entrench risks to children:
- "The physical and relational environment in which children are expected to give input into decisions that affect them in criminal court, family court, and child protection services;
- Family court and/or child protection systems failing to listen to, understand, and give effect to how children experience family violence risk and safety;
- Inadequate consideration and use of family violence information in care of children proceedings, so that perpetrators’ patterns of harm and Mums’ protective parenting are neither recognised nor inform decision-making;
- Lack of family violence-informed responses by some police, social workers, lawyers for children, lawyers working with Mums, and family court Judges, reinforcing risks to children; and
- Undermining and underutilisation of family violence specialists working with children, precluding a whole-of-system safety-enhancing response to them and their whānau."
The report includes recommendations for specialist family violence providers, policy makers and funders, the wider social and justice systems, and researchers.
The authors also highlight that:
"Aotearoa has yet to establish and apply a benchmark for best practice with tamariki impacted by family violence, and so the ‘child protection’ field of practice remains artificially separated from the ‘family violence’ field of practice. Accordingly, the designation of safety-related decision-making for children solely to the court and the child protection system perpetuates widespread misperceptions about children’s experiences of family violence, and their subsequent needs."
The report concludes with 10 principles for practice for an enhanced framework of understanding safe and effective family violence response for children:
"1. Tamariki are taonga and deserve purposeful, effective advocacy as clients in their own right.
2. Unequal and oppressive systems (especially colonisation, racism, and gender inequality) lay the foundations for family violence, but using violence is still a choice. Perpetrators make the choice to use the power they have over wāhine and tamariki to undermine their safety, autonomy, dignity, and resources.
3. The use of family violence tactics against or around children (or against their Mums or whānau) is a form of child abuse that may severely impact their current and future safety, wellbeing, and life prospects.
4. For every act of violence by a perpetrator, there is also an act of resistance by the safe parent. This may seem like complicity or aggression on the surface, but serves to set boundaries around, cope with, limit, or reduce the severity and impacts of abuse for victims and their children.
5. Mums do everything they are free and able to do to keep their tamariki safe and well, and do not have the power to make perpetrators stop using violence. Whānau are instrumental in helping victims to be safe and helping perpetrators to be accountable.
6. Family violence is often ongoing at the time that we are working with tamariki and their Mums, and our actions can either put them at greater risk or make them safer.
7. The extent to which tamariki are impacted by family violence depends in large part on how we learn about, listen to, and act on risks they and their Mums are facing to create safety from these.
8. Tamariki and wāhine victims are the experts in both their experiences of family violence and in coping with the impacts of family violence. They often know what they need to be able to cope, but do not have access to what they need.
9. Tamariki are safest when they, their Mums, and protective whānau are supported in culturally responsive ways, have their needs met, and know that helping systems will take responsibility for managing perpetrators’ violent behaviour.
10. How attuned we are to tamariki and how well we match our advocacy to what is important to them influences how heavy their (and their Mums’) mental burdens are and what opportunities they (and their Mums) have to restore their wairua, capacity, wellbeing and happiness."
In addition to the full report, a brief Executive Summary is available. Also see a summary of the report in The Post article ‘If we are not going to advocate for tamariki, who will?’
Women's Refuge has also published a 2-page summary of the research for Lawyers for Children.
Update: Women's Refuge published a a 4-page summary of the research for family justice and child protection professionals.
More information
The Kōkihi ngā Rito pilot was developed based on Women's Refuge previous research, Kids in the Middle (2021). This research asked children directly what a good family violence service would look like for them. Based on this research, Women's Refuge created a Tamariki refuge workbook (2022) for children and a book for adults who want to know more about children and their experiences, Hear it from me and other tamariki (2022). The Ministry of Social Development (MSD) November 2023 Family Violence and Sexual Violence email update noted that "MSD is investing $5.9 million over four years to 2027 to expand the child advocacy pilot in eight Women’s Refuges." This funding for child advocates was allocated in Budget 2023.
Related resources
For related Aotearoa reports, see the Child Wellbeing Unit's Index of child and youth engagement reports related to Family violence/sexual violence.
The report from Melbourne City Mission, Amplify: Turning up the Volume on Young People and Family Violence (2021), explored the family violence experiences and needs of young people ages 15 to 19.
The Family Violence Death Review Committee has previously published a position brief on Six reasons why we cannot be effective with either intimate partner violence or child abuse and neglect unless we address both together (2017).
Related news
The Citizens Advice Bureau (CAB) launched a new Youth Tool Kete website which contains information about legal rights and responsibilities and how to get help from a real person at CAB. It covers key issues that young people ask about including things like flatting, problems at work and wellbeing. Under wellbeing there is information about relationship issues, domestic violence and more. CAB also launched the report Youth Engagement with Citizens Advice Bureau: A CAB Spotlight Report on the issues facing young people in Aotearoa (2024). The report looks at the most common issues for people under age 25 who seek help from CAB. The report includes information about young people's questions about relationships including care of children, Family Court, separation, parenting and more.
Mana Mokopuna – Children and Young People’s Commission published a new report “Without racism Aotearoa would be better”: Mokopuna share their experiences of racism and solutions to end it (2024). The report shares insights from conversations with 161 young people about their experiences of racism, how it is a barrier to living their best lives and their ideas for solutions. To learn more listen to interviews with Chief Children’s Commissioner Dr Claire Achmad on Waatea News and 531pi.
Related media
Rangatahi identify racism as handicap, Waatea News, 22.03.2024
Solving racism: Mokopuna want te reo Māori compulsory in schools, Te Ao Māori News, 21.03.2024
Young people encounter racism most often at school, report reveals, Stuff, 21.03.2024
Dr Claire Achmad | Aotearoa Chief Children’s Commissioner, Waatea News, 21.03.2024
Rangatahi Māori face higher levels of structural disadvantage study shows, RNZ, 24.11.2023
Sexual violence in tertiary education
Increasingly media have highlighted issues experienced by victim/survivors of sexual violence in tertiary education settings. For example, a recent Stuff article highlighted that Police data shows increasing reports of sexual assaults at schools and tertiary institutes. Victim/survivors, advocates and academics have long been calling for better, safer responses to sexual violence. Advocates and institutions have been developing and implementing policies and practices to address sexual violence in these settings. We highlight some of the key research and resources from Aotearoa, Australia and Canada.
Sexual assault experiences among tertiary students
Researchers at the University of Otago surveyed more than 1500 students about their experiences of harassment, threats and sexual assault in 2019 while at university. They found that 28% of people who completed the survey reported they had experienced at least one form of sexual assault with 14.9% reporting experiences that meet a definition of rape. Only 8% of people who reported sexual assault in the survey disclosed the assault to a health professional.
Detailed findings from the research are available in the article Sexual assault experiences of university students and disclosure to health professionals and others (2020). Other key findings include:
- Almost 1/3 of cisgender (a person whose gender aligns with their sex assigned at birth) females reported experiencing at least one form of sexual assault.
- Queer cisgender females were more likely to report having experienced sexual assault compared to straight cisgendered females.
- Queer cisgender males (over 1 in 5) were twice as likely to report having experienced sexual assault compared to straight cisgender males (around 1 in 10).
- Queer respondents were more likely to report having experienced attempted rape or rape compared to straight respondents.
- Cisgender males were less likely to report having experienced rape compared to cisgender females and less likely to have experienced coercion than cisgender females and gender diverse people.
- Reported sexual assault varied by ethnicity: 31% Māori, 31% New Zealand European/Pākehā, 28% Pacific, 19% Asian and 14% for other non-White/non-Polynesian ethnicities.
- Of people who reported experiencing sexual assault, 88.6% indicated that the perpetrator was male.
Also see related findings in the report Campus climate for students with diverse sexual orientations and/or gender identities at the University of Otago, Aotearoa New Zealand (2016).
The Australia-based Social Research Centre published findings from a survey of more than 43,000 students about lifetime experiences. They found that 30.6% of university students reported having experienced sexual assault at least once in their lifetime. Female students (41.8%), transgender students (42.9%) and students who were non-binary or identified as another gender (56.1%) were more likely to have reported experiencing sexual assault in their lifetime than male students (14.1%). Learn more in the report National Student Safety Survey: report on the prevalence of sexual harassment and sexual assault among university students in 2021.
In 2016, Thursdays in Black surveyed people about their experiences of sexual violence while enrolled in tertiary education in Aotearoa. The report, "In our own words": student experiences of sexual violence prior to and during tertiary education (2017), summarises findings of people's experiences with sexual violence, reporting the violence, seeking help and institutional responses.
Aotearoa institutional responses
The article, What are we learning from Te Kawa o te Ako about eliminating violence? (2022), looks at what could be learned from 20 years of Te Kawa o te Ako, Te Wānanga o Raukawa’s kaupapa solution to support and maintain a culture for learning and teaching including safety. The article documents the challenges and changes over time and highlights how initiatives can create and foster collective responsibility for responding and holding people accountable when violence has occurred.
Te Wānanga o Raukawa also launched He Ara Mataora in 2018. He Ara Mataora project was started to support communities based on the Wānanga experience with Te Kawa o te Ako. Te Wānanga o Raukawa recognised the lack of options for people wanting to end violence without using the State’s criminal system, saying the negative impact of the State's criminal system “...makes our communities less safe, and makes it harder for people to get the support they need. … We need ways to respond to violence that strengthen our communities.” He Ara Mataora is a website with information and tools to help people who want to stop violence without using state services such as police and courts, social workers or agencies.
Academics in Aotearoa and Australia recently looked at practices within 4 universities including University of Otago, Monash University, University of Newcastle and University of Technology Sydney. In their article, A comparative account of institutional approaches to addressing campus-based sexual violence in Australia and Aotearoa New Zealand (2023), they write:
"Our key message is the importance of a whole-of-university approach. We have found that whole-of-university approaches are becoming more common, with social-ecological models guiding complex bundles of interventions that target the social, structural, and systemic determinants of campus-based sexual violence. Such an approach requires strong leadership and collaboration within, across, and beyond universities, informed by evidence of good practices and predicated on a commitment to rigorous evaluation."
To learn more about the practices at the University of Otago, see the article A whole campus approach to sexual violence: the University of Otago Model (2019).
Most wānanga, universities, institutes of technology and polytechnics in Aotearoa have policies that address sexual harassment which may also include sexual violence. These are sometimes within broader harassment and bullying policies, and misconduct policies. Practices and policies in this area continue to change and improve.
International institutional responses
In 2018, the Government of Canada allocated $5.5 million to develop a National Gender-Based Violence Campus Draft Framework. Possibility Seeds, a Canadian social change organisation worked with survivors, student researchers, frontline workers and policy experts on the report Courage to Act: Developing a National draft Framework to Address and Prevent Gender-Based Violence at Post-Secondary Institutions in Canada (2019). Possibility Seeds now leads Courage to Act, a federally funded, multi-year national collaborative project to address and prevent gender-based violence at post-secondary institutions in Canada. The Courage to Act website offers a knowledge hub, free webinars and evidence based tools. However, a recent Conversation article highlighted that Provincial policies on campus sexual violence are inconsistent across Canada.
In Australia, a national Action Plan Addressing Gender-based Violence in Higher Education was launched in February 2024. The Plan outlines 7 actions:
- "establish a National Student Ombudsman
- higher education providers will embed a whole‑of‑organisation approach to prevent and respond to gender-based violence
- introduce a National Higher Education Code to Prevent and Respond to Gender-based Violence
- enhance the oversight and accountability of student accommodation providers
- identify opportunities to ensure legislation, regulation and policies can prioritise victim-survivor safety
- increase data transparency and scrutiny
- regular review of progress against the Action Plan."
Learn more about the history before the Australian national Action Plan was launched, and the work ahead, in The Conversation article 'Change the Course’ set out to end sexual violence and harassment on campus. 5 years on, unis still have work to do.
Our Watch, a national organisation focused on primary prevention of violence against women and children in Australia, has developed a website with resources and information for TAFEs (Technical and Further Education) and universities in Australia.
To learn more
To further explore work in this area see the following Aotearoa research articles:
- Pro-social bystander sexual violence prevention workshops for first year university students : perspectives of students and staff of residential colleges (2021)
- A qualitative exploration of barriers to university students’ willingness to attend sexual violence prevention workshops (2021)
- A mixed-methods pilot study of the EAAA rape resistance programme for female undergraduate students in Aotearoa/ New Zealand (2019).
Media has continued to highlight calls from students and advocates for consent education in schools and tertiary settings. Associate Professor Melanie Beres has previously written about the need to move beyond consent education, saying that:
"If we want to reduce Aotearoa’s sexual violence rates, we need to shift our focus from solely teaching young people about consent and instead work to dismantle harmful gender norms that have trapped our youth for generations."
To further explore consent in relation to sexual violence prevention see the following:
- The failed promise of consent in women's experiences of coercive and unwanted anal sex with men (2024)
- Is consent enough? What the research on normative heterosexuality and sexual violence tells us (2022)
- He Said, She Said, They Said: The Place of Gender in Sexual Violence Theory and Prevention (2021)
- The Complexities of Sexual Consent Among College Students: A Conceptual and Empirical Review (2016)
- "Spontaneous" Sexual Consent: An Analysis of Sexual Consent Literature (2007).
You can also explore our database under the search tertiary education, tertiary students or whare wānanga.
Related media
Sexting: Experts on whether abstinence-only text sex education is enough, NZ Herald, 23.03.2024
Massive under-reporting of sexual harassment and misconduct uncovered at UC, Canta, 20.10.2023
Almost 150 reports of relationships between teachers and students, RNZ, 17.10.2023
Sexual assault claims average one each month at Victoria University halls, Stuff, 28.11.2022
Grappling with university relationships, Otago Daily Times, 19.09.2022
Wronged academic gets public apology as high-profile #MeToo case comes to an end, Stuff, 25.08.2022
Top academics call out sexual harassment, Newsroom, 24.07.2022
Reports of sexual assault in schools, universities up 70% since 2015, Stuff, 21.06.2022
Survivors hopeful about uni’s change, Otago Daily Times, 13.05.2022
The hidden barrier holding metoo back - and the women who are challenging it, Stuff, 12.05.2022
Broadcasting student accused of assault allowed back into course, Star News, 07.04.2022
I was the first to know my professor was a sexual predator, Stuff, 31.03.2022
University of Auckland reviews sexual misconduct complaints after two similar cases, RNZ, 26.03.2022
Calls for reform after alleged sexual assault case at Auckland Uni, Stuff, 24.03.2022
Alleged sexual assault case: Auckland University admits disciplinary process flawed, RNZ, 22.03.2024
Third of sexual assaults on university students go unreported - study, RNZ, 09.10.2020
A third of NZ university students are sexually assaulted, a study suggests, Stuff, 06.06.2019
Changes related to courts
Recent changes affect victim/survivors and offenders in Courts. This includes expanding the eligibility for Family Violence Adult Safety Programmes in the Family Court and changes to legal aid funding for section 27 reports, known as cultural reports.
Expanded eligibility for Family Violence Adult Safety programmes
People who apply for protection orders without notice and are then directed to proceed on notice by the judge will be offered a safety programme before the protection order application is considered. This change came into effect from January 2024. The Ministry of Justice (MOJ) update for lawyers providing Legal Aid related to the expansion of the programmes also notes that "Children will be able to access safety programmes when requested by the service provider, as they are best placed to assess the risk to the applicant and their children."
Find further details in the MOJ update for family violence safety and non-violence providers for January 2024.
For information for people experiencing family violence, see the Ministry of Justice information on Safety and wellbeing for you and your children.
This change is part of the Budget 2023 initiative to ‘Improve access to family violence programmes in court and the community.’ For more information on this initiative, see page 14 of Te Puna Aonui's Budget 2023 briefing.
Changes to legal aid funding for section 27 reports
Legal aid funding is no longer available to support section 27 reports (related to section 27 of the Sentencing Act 2002), also known as cultural reports. The Legal Services Amendment Bill received Royal Assent on 7 March 2024 and came into effect 14 days later. Justice Minister Paul Goldsmith said "Once the Bill is enacted, Section 27 reports will be excluded from legal aid funding and return to their original purpose."
The MOJ update for lawyers providing legal aid related to the changes notes that legal aid funding is prevented from written reports or in-person appearances. The NZ Bar Association notes that under section 27, offenders may still be able to call on a person to speak to the Court about their background as originally intended by the Sentencing Act.
In an article for the Spinoff on What are cultural sentencing reports and why does National want to scrap them?, authors Tara Oakley and Rebecca Cupples note that:
"Section 27 reports look for reasons, not excuses, for an offender’s behaviour. They consider how someone’s background might have contributed to their offending, if any actions have been taken to resolve the offending, and what support mechanisms might prevent further offending.
The backgrounds of offenders commonly include things like substance abuse disorders, mood disorders, personality disorders, neurodivergence, learning difficulties, illiteracy, brain injuries, poverty, and trauma – including extraordinary rates of historic family, sexual, and violent victimisation. State care is another commonality." (emphasis added)
In a Newsroom article about concerns for losing funding for section 27 reports, AUT School of Law Dean Khylee Quince said:
“I’ve done a few hundred reports, and I don’t think I’ve ever done one for a person who is not also a victim of significant offending.
“You might judge them as being bad people, but they often have really big backgrounds of really terrible abuse. Quite often I’ll be the only person they’ve ever spoken to about that abuse.”
Advocates, academics and lawyers have raised concerns about the loss of legal aid funding for section 27 reports. See related media below for more information.
Related media
He Whare Wāhine through Te Rau Ora are inviting kaimahi Māori to share feedback through a national workforce development survey. The survey is designed for Kaimahi Māori working with whānau living with violence or working in the family violence and sexual violence sectors.
The survey is available online.
Te Rau Ora was commissioned by Te Pūkotahitanga, the Tangata Whenua Ministerial Advisory Group, to gather insights from kaimahi Māori about workforce development. Te Rau Ora is researching ways to understand and strengthen the family violence and sexual violence workforce in Aotearoa.
Te Rau Ora is seeking insights into experiences, challenges, and aspirations for kaimahi Māori who work in family violence and sexual violence. The research will contribute to improving support structures and fostering of a more resilient and empowered workforce.
The survey should take about 20 minutes. It asks questions about your work environment, training experience, cultural considerations, future goals and questions about you.
Te Rau Ora will also be running consultation hui. Dates are not yet confirmed for the hui.
You can fill in the confidential survey online.
The Te Rau Ora project team includes Rolinda Karapu, Kirimatao Paipa and Taina Awa. For questions contact taina.awa@terauora.com.
For more information see the project flyer.
Update: The April 2024 Te Puna Aonui Pānui has more information about the survey and work on this project.
Update: For more information see the NZ Herald article Survey to gauge links between Māori kaimahi and their kaupapa Māori services.
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