Iwi justice panel to come to city
An alternative justice panel with a te ao Ma¯ori kaupapa approach is in the works to hit Palmerston North.
Te Pae Oranga Iwi Community Panels are for low-level offenders, holding them accountable while giving support to address the issues in their lives that led to their offending.
The initiative was operating in 16 areas across New Zealand, with police aspiring to expand to 40 sites.
Acting area commander Inspector Clifford Brown was hopeful in the next 12 months Manawatu¯ would see the funded operation.
He hoped it would help local wha¯nau who found themselves in the justice system seek out greater moemoea¯, aspirations, for themselves.
In lieu of Te Pae Oranga in Manawatu¯, the region developed a Wha¯nau Ora Alternative Resolution model in 2014 to help wha¯nau transition from criminal activity, by focusing on underlying issues that contributed to unsociable lifestyles.
But Brown said it had put significant pressure on police partners such as Te Tihi o Ruahine Wha¯nau Ora Alliance who largely supported the initiative within their own budget.
‘‘Undoubtedly we are very fortunate that there are existing service providers that continue to step up to meet that demand.
‘‘Te Pae Oranga is a parallel, and the beauty with that is, they come with funding.
‘‘We see good opportunity into the future in Te Pae Oranga for our Manawatu¯ and Whanganui regions.’’ to turn their lives around, rather than putting them back in the court system.
However, as wha¯nau moved away from the support systems they relied on, some wha¯nau began to present in the courts again, he said.
With the addition of Te Pae Oranga, wha¯nau would have interregional support to keep striving for their moemoea¯.
’’It’s just giving opportunities to get our people to think a little bit differently,’’ he said.
‘‘Te Pae Oranga is open to everyone in the community, it’s not just limited to Ma¯ori.
‘‘If someone is prepared to engage in a kaupapa Ma¯ori approach, ka pai. The approach and the thinking of our iwi has always been tatou katoa, they’re all our wha¯nau so we’ll support them in any way we can.’’