Parliament has responded to the publication of the final report from the Royal Commission of Inquiry into Abuse in Care, with the Prime Minister saying the stories it contained were “horrific and harrowing”.
The report was tabled in Parliament with politicians from a range of parties responding to its contents.
Christopher Luxon said today was a day “many New Zealanders who were abused in State and faith-based care never thought would come”.
“It’s the day that this Parliament accepts, with deep sorrow and regret, the Report of the Royal Commission of Inquiry into Abuse in Care.”
He said many of the survivors’ stories in the report were “horrific and harrowing”.
“They are painful to read, but not as painful as they were to endure.
“The State was supposed to care for you — but instead many of you were subjected to the most horrendous physical, emotional, mental, and sexual abuse.
“A number of faith-based schools, institutions and people in positions of authority who you should have been able to trust — failed you in the worst possible way.
“When you tried to speak up those same people turned a blind eye, they covered it up, and they prevented you from seeking justice for far too long.
Māori, Pacific, deaf and disabled people disproportionately “bore the brunt” of a lot of the abuse and neglect, Luxon said.
“We like to think that abuse like this doesn’t happen here in New Zealand. But it did and it is a shameful chapter of our history that we must confront.
“Mr Speaker, this is a dark and sorrowful day in New Zealand’s history.
“It is important that, as a country, we bring to the surface and understand the hard truths of what happened so we can try and move forward together.
“I say to the survivors, the burden is no longer yours to carry alone. The State is now standing here beside you, accountable and ready to take action.”
Lake Alice experiences ‘did amount to torture’
Luxon said as the Royal Commission traversed many types of care as part of its inquiry, it was his “heavy duty” to say the Government formally acknowledged that the experiences of some children and young people at Lake Alice Hospital “did amount to torture”.
“Patients at Lake Alice were given electric shocks without anaesthetic, as well as painful and immobilising paraldehyde injections.
“These so-called treatments were not administered for medical reasons. They were used for punishment and emotional control.
“These experiences were nothing short of horrific and they happened in the New Zealand health system within living memory.
“What happened was wrong. You knew then it was wrong, and all these years later, the State also acknowledges it was wrong.
“Today, I humbly stand before you in this house to offer a long overdue apology to the survivors of Lake Alice. I am sorry that it has taken so long for this acknowledgement of torture.”
He said he understood that for some Lake Alice survivors the acknowledgement of torture was something they’d waited for for decades.
“For you, this is a day of great significance. For others who suffered torture, I know this acknowledgement feels hollow without the recognition that comes with redress.
“I regret that that is not something that we can give you today, but it is a priority for the Government in the coming months.”
Luxon said not every child in state care was harmed, but the report’s release was an opportunity to acknowledge “those who had their carefree childhoods cruelly taken away from them”.
He said Erica Stanford, the minister responsible for the inquiry, would lead a ministerial group to respond to the report’s findings and its 138 recommendations.
The first step, he said, would be a formal apology from the Government on November 12, and the Government understood the urgency and importance of it progressing work on redress.
“We will provide clarity before the end of the year.”
Luxon said he acknowledged the previous Labour government for commencing the inquiry six years ago.
He encouraged all New Zealanders to read the report “to understand the abuse that you, the survivors, suffered and the lifelong impact it has had on your lives”.
“Through this, we will understand the obligation we all have to prevent it happening again and to speak up whenever and wherever we see the abuse of anyone, in care or otherwise.”
The speech was met by a waiata in the packed public gallery.
Prison ‘pipeline’ created by abuse in state care – Hipkins
Leader of the Opposition Chris Hipkins said he saw many familiar faces in the public gallery and acknowledged their strength, courage and perserverance.
“How hard you have fought. Many of you have dedicated your lives to this fight.
“We see you, we hear you, and we thank you. And whilst a formal apology is some time away, we are sorry. As a society and a country, we are sorry.”
He said the abuse in state care was not over. The statement was met with applause from the public gallery.
Hipkins said it was important to acknowledge the “pipeline” created of those who were in state care and the prison population.
“Gangs contain survivors of that abuse.”
He acknowledged Luxon and the comments he had made.
“Our government set up this inquiry and we made some changes. We changed the redress rules on an interim basis and we did set up the survivor’s experience board. But, Prime Minister, we didn’t do enough.
“The ball now falls to you and your government. This must be bigger than politics.”
‘We either tinker or transform’ – Greens
Green Party co-leader Chlöe Swarbrick said words could not adequately convey the systemic failures and injustices perpetuated by the state.
“But words do matter. They are something to be held accountable to. So, joining with all of Parliament, let it be clear that we in the Greens are so, so deeply sorry.”
“At one point or another we must look in the mirror, away from the heat of knee-jerk political campaigns. And the basic question for this House is whether we are serious about transformational change to stop harm at the hand of the state.
“If we are, we need to reconcile that this abuse and the consequences of this abuse are not historic. That abuse and harm cannot be siloed. It is built into the fabric of the way that our state has worked since colonisation in this country established this Parliament.
“That should not be a controversial statement.
“We can own our history and we can do better. The buck stops here. We either do something or we don’t.
“We either tinker or we transform.”
She said the apology should mean no one was ever subjected to harm by the state again.
“And to get really real and frank, what that means, and what survivors this morning told us … no military-style boot camps.”
The comment was met with applause and cheers from the public gallery.
“It means retention of Section 7AA of the Oranga Tamariki Act — at the very least. It means upholding and honouring … te Tiriti o Waitangi.”
MPs will continue to respond to the report in the House this evening.