Arguments for inquiry
Sonja Cooper — Wellington lawyer specialising in abuse claims.
WELLINGTON lawyer Sonja Cooper has more than 700 clients alleging mistreatment in the State’s care.
Each provided a piece of evidence pointing to a systemic problem that led to violence, sexual abuse and neglect, she said.
But the claims were just the tip of an iceberg and many more victims were yet to come forward, she said.
The Government’s ‘‘head in the sand approach’’ to historic abuse appeared to be motivated by a desire to save money, avoid embarrassment and to ‘‘just get on with it’’, she said.
A formal inquiry was needed to identify lessons from the past and ensure a better future for children, she said.
‘‘We actually haven’t put right the past yet.’’
Dunedin survivor Darryl Smith.
DARRYL Smith says the New Zealand Government needs to ‘‘show some mana’’ to put right the abuses of the past.
Mr Smith, of Dunedin, was sexually abused in state care in New Zealand and Australia, but found ‘‘a wee bit of closure’’ by participating in Australia’s Royal Commission into Institutional Abuse.
New Zealand needed to follow suit by launching its own inquiry, allowing more people tell their stories and raise the public’s awareness of what happened.
It would also help ensure more people were held accountable, along with the system itself, he said.
‘‘New Zealand needs to step up — step up and be strong, and form a royal commission like they do in Australia and
England and everywhere else.’’
Milton survivor Gene Browne.
GENE Browne wants to hear the State say sorry.
The Milton man has spent most of his adult life in prison since being sexually abused at the Dunedin Boys’ Home and other state institutions.
He was ‘‘not too worried’’ about seeking a financial settlement, but said he would like to hear the State apologise to victims.
A formal inquiry would also help bring more offenders to justice, he believed.
‘‘I wouldn’t mind getting some of those fellas prosecuted for what they’ve done,’’ he said.
Dugal Armour — Otago branch manager, Male Survivors of Sexual Abuse.
THE Government is ‘‘inadvertently perpetuating abuse’’ by refusing to publicly apologise for historic mistreatment of children in its care.
That is the view of Male Survivors of Sexual Abuse Otago branch manager Dugal Armour, whose group has about 30 men on its books.
All were victims of historic sexual abuse, including while in state care, but many never got to hear their abuser say sorry.
‘‘Very few abusers or perpetrators ever take responsibility for what’s actually happened. The hardest journey for people recovering is that they have to do it on their own.
‘‘The Government taking some step to acknowledge and to apologise I think would help in their healing,’’ he said.
Jacinda Ardern — Labour deputy leader.
LABOUR’S deputy leader Jacinda Ardern says New Zealand still needs a ‘‘national conversation’’ about historic abuse in state care.
Labour was among parties on both sides of the House — except National — throwing its weight behind calls for a formal inquiry and public apology.
Ms Ardern said she ‘‘totally disagreed’’ with Prime Minister Bill English’s claim enough was known about the problem.
The Confidential Listening and Assistance Service ‘‘didn’t finish the job’’, and many victims were yet to share their stories, she said.
An inquiry could dig into the details of historic abuse in state care and help right the wrongs of the past, she said.
‘‘But someone has to be bold enough to start that process.’’
Bill Kilgallon — director, Catholic Church New Zealand’s National Office for Professional Standards.
THE Catholic Church might be on the fence when it comes to a formal inquiry into historic child abuse in New Zealand, but Bill Kilgallon is not.
Mr Kilgallon directs the Catholic Church office tasked with investigating child abuse claims within the church in New Zealand.
The church’s official position was that any decision on an inquiry was the Government’s to make, but Mr Kilgallon said his own view was an inquiry would be ‘‘of real benefit to the individuals who went through that’’.
He had ‘‘no doubt’’ it would identify ‘‘systemic issues that led to that situation, and led to the abuse that many people experienced’’.
‘‘Are there lessons to be learnt from where things went wrong in the past? In my experience, there often are.’’
It would also help victims looking for ‘‘some way of understanding what’s happened to them in their lives — to tell their story and have it believed’’.
‘‘An inquiry can do that because it can listen to people
. . . and it can reflect then on what went wrong and apply those lessons for the future.’’
The Minister’s response — Anne Tolley:
SOCIAL Development Minister Anne Tolley is too busy to be interviewed by the Otago Daily Times about historic abuse in state care, her office says.
And she did not want to answer tough questions put to her by ODT Insight, either.
Requests to interview Ms Tolley were made on June 29 and July 3, but the following day her staff declined, saying Ms Tolley had ‘‘a really busy diary with meetings and legislation’’.
They offered a written statement instead, in which Ms Tolley defended the ‘‘very good system in place to assist those who have grievances’’.
That included the CLAS process, fasttracked claim settlements and individual apologies, as well as the new Ministry for Vulnerable Children, which would put children and young people’s safety and wellbeing first, she said.
A further request on July 6, asking for an interview any time in the next week and ahalf, was also rejected.
Ms Tolley’s staff said she was not available, as ‘‘with the next two weeks being recess she’s out and about each day doing engagements’’.
ODT Insight also sent Ms Tolley a list of written questions, including asking for her view on the extent of abuse in state care, its impact on society, whether the State accepted responsibility and why it would not offer a public apology or commit to a formal inquiry.
Her staff responded by email, saying Ms Tolley had ‘‘nothing further to add’’.