293. This chapter seeks to understand how actions of abuse and neglect are understood as transgressions from an ao Māori worldview, from a Deaf, disability and mental distress framework, and from Pacific values. This chapter expands on the frameworks set out in Part 1 of this report.

294. Acts of abuse and neglect are often transgressions against multiple and overlapping values, principles, and aspects of a person and their collective. For example, an act of whakaiti can be understood as a transgression of a person’s mana and tapu, and in some cases, a transgression of their whakapapa.

Ngā takahitanga e ai ki tā te tirohanga Māori
Transgressions from an ao Māori worldview

295. From an ao Māori worldview, violence and tūkino of any kind is a transgression against:

• individuals, their whānau and whakapapa
• the individual’s mana
• the mana of the collective and
• tapu, mana motuhake, mauri and wairua.

Ngā takahitanga o te whakapapa me te mana motuhake
Transgressions against whakapapa and mana motuhake

296. The most common and destructive transgression against whakapapa and mana motuhake has been the removal of tamariki, rangatahi and pakeke Māori into the State and faith-based care systems, and their continued separation from whānau, hapū, iwi, tūrangawaewae, and their taha Māori, once in care.

297. Whānau have been prevented from upholding their collective whakapapa rights and responsibilities to whānau members in care and from exercising mana motuhake over decisions impacting the lives of their whānau members. This also applies to hapū and iwi, and other collective groupings.

298. Māori survivors spoke of the separation from their whānau as a double alienation from knowledge and connection to their whakapapa and identity. The separation denied survivors their rights and responsibilities associated with their personal and collective whakapapa, thereby impacting on their ability to develop important bonds and practice whanaungatanga. It also prevented survivors from practicing and connecting to their taha Māori, including reo Māori, tikanga Māori, and mātauranga Māori. This transgression against whakapapa strikes at the core of an individual’s right to their identity, their knowledge of, and connection with their tūrangawaewae and their understanding of the ao Māori world.

299. The separation from identity and transgression against whakapapa were further exacerbated by other forms of Tūkino (abuse, harm and trauma) experienced in care, including racist abuse and cultural neglect perpetuated by individual abusers and institutions. Many of these instances were not only transgressions against whakapapa, but also transgressions against the mana, tapu and wairua of survivors.

300. The institutionalisation and depersonalisation of many Māori survivors was also a form of tūkino which served to further strip survivors of their identities, and transgressed whakapapa.

301. Generally, the Inquiry also observed that adoption processes transgressed against whakapapa. Closed adoption processes and practices in particular were extreme transgressions, with survivors being completely severed (from both a legal and practical viewpoint) and kept isolated from knowledge of and connection to their identities and whakapapa. It also removed the rights and responsibilities of whānau who adopted out their tamariki.

Ngā takahitanga o te tapu me te mana
Transgressions against tapu and mana

302. Tapu and mana are inseparable, both are inherited and must be protected. An individual’s tapu and mana are also inseparable from the mana of the collective – if a person’s tapu was transgressed, it would traditionally carry significant consequences, as this would also be a transgression against the mana of the collective, not just the individual.

303. Tapu is not a linear concept but exists in multiple layers and many ways that are all interconnected. The violation of a person’s physical body would not just be a transgression of their physical state and tapu, but also of their psychological and emotional states, and those of their whānau and hapū. Their mana tangata (personal mana) would be likewise affected, as would their mana tūpuna (ancestral mana) along with that of their whānau and hapū.

304. All body parts are tapu and the transgression of them can affect a person’s health and wellbeing. Certain parts of the body hold other layers of tapu and require further care, respect, and protection. This includes the tapu of the head and the whare tangata (womb), which is directly tied to the survival of people and preservation of whakapapa.

305. The tapu associated with genitalia and the reproductive system is intimately tied to the concept of whakapapa and mana tūpuna, as well as one’s personal physical mana tangata. Sexual abuse, and the defiling of someone sexually, is therefore considered to be one of the most severe forms of tūkino – abuse, harm and trauma – as it not only violates the tapu of an individual’s genitalia and reproductive system, but also transgresses against whakapapa and mana tūpuna. Where sexual abuse is inflicted upon a woman, it is considered “a violation of not only the woman herself but also of past and future generations”.”[412]

“Māori saw rape and especially incest as transgressing the mana, the status, the dignity and the future birth right of not only the victim but also the abuser and his people. Shame was seen, lain, addressed, actioned and put in its place. People still remember today, in tikanga, the transgressions of Sexual Violence dating back 1,200 years.”[413]

306. The Inquiry was also told of other tūkino – abuse, harm and trauma – that transgressed against the tapu, mana, mana tūpuna, and whakapapa of survivors – including invasive vaginal examinations, and the denial of reproductive rights, specifically through forced abortions and sterilisations. This was an extreme form of tūkino, completely removing survivors’ rights over their own whakapapa and denigrating the tapu of their tinana.

307. Māori survivors’ mana, tapu and wairua were transgressed through tūkino – abuse, harm and trauma – such as whakaiti, takahi mana, patu wairua, patu hinengaro and, patu manawa. Where tūkino was targeted and inflicted upon a tamariki, rangatahi or pakeke Māori in care because of their culture and ethnicity, this was also a transgression against whakapapa.

Ngā takahitanga o ngā anga Turi, whaikaha me te wairangitanga
Transgressions of Deaf, disability and mental distress framework

Ngā takahitanga o te mana tangata me te whakaute i te motuhaketanga ā-tangata
Transgressions against inherent dignity and respect for difference

308. The separation of Deaf, disabled and mentally distressed people from their families and placement in care away from their communities (segregation) transgressed the principles of inherent dignity and respect for difference, as it reflected social attitudes that marginalised Deaf, disabled and mentally distressed people and saw them as less valuable than others. Grouping people together into care based on diagnoses, actual or perceived impairments, or behaviour (congregation) transgressed the principles of inherent dignity and respect for difference, because it often led to them being depersonalised and dehumanised rather than being treated as an individual with diverse qualities, interests and needs.

309. Transgressions of inherent dignity can manifest in physical or non-physical form. Abuse and neglect of a person’s body, such as physical and sexual abuse, seclusion and restraint, dental and medical neglect and medical abuse, was a transgression of the principle of inherent dignity. Non-physical abuse and neglect, including emotional, spiritual, educational, developmental, financial and psychological abuse and neglect, and dehumanising and degrading treatment, was also a transgression of inherent dignity.

310. Society’s devaluation of Deaf, disabled people, and people with mental distress, and how this attitude was reflected in care settings, was a transgression of the principle of respect for difference. The compounding abuse and neglect experienced by Deaf, disabled and mentally distressed people who were Māori, Pacific Peoples, or had diverse sexualities and gender expression was a transgression of the principle of respect for difference.

Ngā takahitanga o te tōkekenga me te painga o te whai wāhitanga me te whakaurunga atu
Transgressions against full and effective participation and inclusion

311. The segregation of Deaf, disabled and mentally distressed people transgressed the principle of full and effective participation and inclusion, because it denied them the ability to live with their families, be part of the community and contribute to society on their own terms. Living in large-scale institutions, or in smaller segregated residential facilities, was a transgression of the principle of inclusion because it denied people the ability be part of a family, be part of the community, attend their local school, and participate in the work force.

Ngā takahitanga o te mana motuhake me te taurima arotahi ki te tangata
Transgressions against self-determination and person-centered care

312. Failure to provide individualised care that met the specific needs of Deaf, disabled and mentally distressed people was a transgression of the principle of person-centred care. This transgression manifested in the form of people being treated homogenously and receiving the same care and support regardless of their individual needs.

313. Failure to give people the ability to make decisions about their care and be in control of their own lives, including the dignity of being able to take risks and make mistakes, was a transgression against the principle of self-determination.

Ngā takahitanga o ngā uara o Te Moana-nui-a-Kiwa
Transgressions of Pacific values

Ngā takahitanga o te kāinga
Transgressions against kainga

314. The removal of Pacific children, young people and adults into care, and being kept separated from family once in care, was a transgression against kainga (family). This not only disconnected Pacific survivors’ from their kainga, but also damaged survivors sense of self and severed their ties to their culture, cultural identity and language.

315. The transgression against kainga was further exacerbated by abuse and neglect survivors’ suffered in care, including racist abuse and cultural neglect at an individual and institutional level. Most care settings failed to provide Pacific children, young people and adults with access to their culture – this was in and of itself a transgression against kainga.

316. In some cases, Pacific survivors entered into care having knowledge and connection to their culture, language and identity, only to exit care without it. This was a form of cultural neglect and was reflective of institutional racism prevalent throughout State and faith-based care.

317. Transgressions against kainga affected Pacific survivors not only at the individual level, but also on the collective and intergenerational levels. Kainga were also denied the opportunity to build and maintain relationships with their family members, and to teach and raise their children in an environment where they were surrounded by their culture and language.

318. Closed adoption practices and the misrecording of ethnicity information, which resulted in Pacific Peoples losing connections with their cultures, languages and identities, were transgressions against kainga. Where Pacific Peoples were separated from their families because of transgressions against the vā (the “space between” that holds people and things together) between family members (for example, abuse by a relative), the resulting transgression against kainga was worsened.

Ngā takahitanga o te tapuakiga / talitonuga
Transgressions against tapuakiga / talitonuga

319. For many Pacific Peoples, a “relationship with God and the church is actively maintained to ensure positive health, wellbeing and identity”.[414] They believed that each human was of value to God. Though not all Pacific Peoples consider themselves to be religious or go to church regularly, “the church can [still] be seen as an anchor for stability and belonging”.[415] While many Pacific families have strong affiliations with different churches, “many Indigenous aspects of spirituality” are also still “a prevailing feature of many Pacific cultures” and families and can therefore be part of their identity and sense of belonging as well.[416]

320. Disconnection from the church, disconnection from or loss of faith or spirituality, as a result of being abused by clergy or lay people in faith-based care settings, was a transgression against tapuakiga / talitonuga (spirituality, indigenous beliefs and Christianity). The Inquiry also heard of instances where Pacific survivors experienced sexual abuse in pastoral care. These instances demonstrate the transgression of tapuakiga / talitonuga for Pacific survivors by pastoral sexual abuse. As the actions of the abusers tarnish the sacredness of their spiritual relationship and the authority vested in the church by their communities has been tarnished by the actions of abusers. This disrupted the vā within their kainga and between their kainga and the church.

321. Tapuakiga / talitonuga were also transgressed when Pacific survivors were disconnected in care through being denied opportunities to attend church, to pray in their language, express their identities and follow their own beliefs.

Ngā takahitanga o te kaitasi
Transgressions against kaitasi

322. As a subset of transgressions against kainga and tapuakiga / talitonuga, connections to wider cultural and church communities are important for Pacific Peoples because “the identity of a Pasifika person belongs within their family and community”.[417] Disconnection of Pacific Peoples from their communities is a transgression against kaitasi, or the ability to belong to a collective that shares responsibility for one another. This is a subset of transgressions against kainga and tapuakiga / talitonuga.

Ngā takahitanga o te vā
Transgressions against the vā

323. If Pacific Peoples’ wellbeing is understood “as the totality of the quality of [their] relationships”, then the nature, extent and impacts of abuse and neglect must be examined by understanding how they rupture relationships and result in disconnection from self, from family, from culture, and community, from faith, and spirituality, as well as from possibilities for the future.[418]

324. Abuse and neglect of Pacific children, young people and adults in care is a transgression against the vā:

“When there is harm and abuse, the vā has been breached.”[419]

325. The concept of the vā can itself be misused and abused.[420] For example, some Pacific survivors or their families may choose to hide abuse for the sake of avoiding shame or stigma, or to preserve reputation and “maintain the traditional values of respect, solidarity, and resilience within families and the wider community”.[421] Secrecy and silence about abuse and neglect is a transgression against the vā, because the values have already been breached.[422]