Ngā whakataunga mō te tūkinotanga ā-horopaki
Conclusions on abuse in particular settings

Te tūkinotanga me te whakahapa i rāngona e ngā purapura ora Māori i te pūnaha taurima
Abuse and neglect experienced by Māori survivors across care

990. Tamariki, rangatahi and pakeke Māori in care during the Inquiry period experienced all forms of abuse and neglect across all care settings. Tamariki, rangatahi and pakeke Māori were often targeted because of their ethnicity, and this was often overlaid with racism. Māori survivors reported experiencing harsher treatment across many settings, being degraded because of their ethnicity and skin colour, and reported being denied access to their ability to practice mātauranga, tikanga, reo Māori, and the ability to connect to their whakapapa, sometimes violently. For tāngata Turi Māori, tāngata whaikaha Māori, and Takatāpui survivors, these abuses were further compounded with disablism, ableism, audism and/or homophobia.

991. In social welfare settings, tamariki and rangatahi Māori made up the majority. Māori were also disproportionately populated in other care settings.

992. In faith-based settings, Māori survivors experienced co-occurring racism, cultural neglect, and spiritual abuse. Survivors reported having their identities stripped from them - in some faith-based settings this was informed by a religious belief that Māori culture was inferior to Pākehā Christian culture. Some were made to believe that they were inherently sinful because they were Māori. Survivors were also routinely singled out in faith-based care, verbally abused, and were given less opportunities than their Pākehā counterparts.

993. In faith-based boarding schools for Māori, survivors experienced abuse similar to other faith-based schools, including physical, psychological and sexual abuse from staff and peers. In faith-based boarding schools for Māori, some of the physical abuse in these settings also featured inappropriate applications of cultural practices. Survivors also experienced cultural neglect in some schools, saying te reo and tikanga were not as prevalent as they had expected.

994. In large-scale disability and psychiatric settings, Māori survivors experienced racism and were denied access to their whakapapa, whānau, hapū, iwi and taha Māori. Settings were based on Eurocentric approaches to health, which denied kaupapa Māori models, and dismissed or pathologised behaviours associated with Māori spirituality.

Te tūkinotanga me te whakahapa i rāngona e ngā purapura ora o Pasifika i te pūnaha taurima
Abuse and neglect experienced by Pacific survivors across care

995. Pacific survivors experienced all forms of abuse and neglect across settings, particularly racial abuse and cultural neglect, including being denied the ability to practice and access knowledge of their cultural identities, practices, customs, languages, and access to their kainga (family). Pacific survivors also experienced overt and targeted racist abuse, including racist verbal abuse, and spoke about receiving harsher treatment across many settings.

996. In social welfare settings, and particularly in social welfare institutions, Pacific children and young people were disproportionately represented where they experienced racism and targeting.

997. In faith-based settings, Pacific survivors experienced co-occurring racism, cultural neglect and spiritual abuse in faith-based care. Survivors discussed how they were routinely singled out based on their skin colour, and experienced verbal abuse and were given less opportunities that their Pākehā counterparts. Pacific survivors had particularly strong challenges for disclosing pastoral sexual abuse within their aiga / kainga and communities, as religious leaders were often held in high esteem in their communities.

998. In faith-based schools, particularly Wesley School, Pacific survivors experienced beatings and hazing, as well as sexual assault. Violence was regularly enforced through student hierarchies and encouraged by staff.

999. In large-scale disability and psychiatric settings, Pacific survivors were denied across to their cultures, families, and communities, as well as denied access to Pacific methods of healing.

Te tūkinotanga me te whakahapa i rāngona e ngā purapura ora Turi, whaiakaha hoki i te pūnaha taurima
Abuse and neglect experienced by Deaf and disabled survivors across care

1000. Disabled and Deaf survivors experienced ableist, disablist and audist abuse, including targeted abuse and derogatory verbal abuse. Disabled and Deaf survivors were denied personhood and were often stripped of their dignity and autonomy.

1001. In faith-based settings, disabled survivors experienced physical and emotional neglect. In faith-based education, Disabled survivors reported peer on peer bullying, educational neglect, and physical and sexual abuse. In faith-based boarding schools, disabled and Deaf survivors reported abuse and neglect that devalued and degraded them and disregarded their inherent human value, including being humiliated, being told they were dumb, and being denied the ability to communicate in a way of their choosing, and being neglected of sufficient education.

1002. In disability and mental health settings, disabled survivors experienced all forms of abuse and gross neglect, including physical, mental, emotional, educational neglect. Disabled survivors experienced medical abuse including forced sterilisations and contraception

1003. In Deaf settings, Deaf survivors were not supported to communicate how they wished to, were formed to adopt oralist methods of communication, and were ridiculed for signing with facial expressions. They were denied knowledge and access to Sign Language and Deaf culture. For tāngata Turi Māori, these experiences were compounded with racism and cultural neglect of their Māori culture – resulting in them having no access to either culture. In Deaf settings, Deaf survivors also experienced educational and psychological neglect, and physical, emotional, and sexual abuse.

1004. In special schools for blind children, the Inquiry heard of emotional and educational neglect and active suppression and devaluation of “blindisms”.

Te tūkinotanga i roto i ngā whakaritenga tokoora, ture taiohi hoki
Abuse in social welfare settings

1005. Social welfare settings included foster care, family home foster care, social welfare and youth justice residences, and third-party care providers. For many, their experiences included repeated instances of abuse over many years, from multiple abusers and across different types of social welfare settings.

1006. Foster care and family homes were environments where abuse and neglect could occur behind doors, resulting in survivors feeling trapped. The Inquiry heard of gross neglect, including being neglected of basic needs such as food and shelter; ongoing and degrading psychological and racial abuse; being separated and isolated from their families and whānau; regular physical violence, particularly as a way to punish and control; sexual abuse from carers and peers; and, that survivors were treated like slaves and exploited for their labour.

1007. Social welfare residences and institutions were hierarchical environments with ‘cultures of violence’. Most forms of abuse and neglect that occurred within social welfare residences and institutions were used to punish, control, and degrade survivors.

1008. The Inquiry heard of degrading treatment upon entering; pervasive psychological abuse, including survivors being told they were criminals, useless, and unwanted; racism and cultural neglect, including being degraded and targeted for being Māori or Pacific; being separated and isolated from their families and whānau; the denial of basic needs and physical neglect; the systemic and routine use of physical violence, including staff encouraging peer on peer abuse as a means of control, particularly through the Kingpin system; pervasive and targeted sexual abuse; the routine use of solitary confinement; and, the use of medications to control and restrain residents.

1009. Abuse and neglect in third-party placements were similar to those experienced in other settings. Third-party placements were unique in that they were often in isolated ‘boot camp’ settings and were environments of extreme psychological and physical violence.

1010. Māori, Pacific, and Takatāpui, Rainbow and MVPFAFF+ individuals and communities were often targeted because of their identities and experienced co-occurring discrimination with other forms of abuse and neglect

1011. Despite what is known from domestic and international research about the low reporting rates of sexual abuse,[1426] the many accounts of such abuse that survivors have provided to the Inquiry clearly demonstrate that this was a ‘systemic problem’ across social welfare settings.[1427] Aotearoa New Zealand’s social welfare care system clearly did not adequately consider the risk of sexual abuse occurring, which is shown by dismissive attitudes to complaints by children and young people, or their whānau and support networks,[1428] and misplaced trust in some staff.

Te tūkino me te whakahapa i roto i ngā whakaritenga tūāpapa a-whakapono
Abuse and neglect in faith-based care settings

1012. Faith-based settings included pastoral care, children’s homes, orphanages, residences, foster care, unmarried mothers’ homes, faith-based schools. Survivors in these settings reported abuse by clergy and religious, elders, lay staff, teachers, volunteers, foster parents, and peers.

1013. Survivors from faith-based settings reported all types of abuse and neglect with many variations of co-occurrence. Underpinning much of this abuse, however, was an abuse of religious and spiritual teaching and authority.

1014. There are examples of those in faith-based care being viewed through a religious lens as sinful or in need of redemption, which often dehumanised them and was used to justify further abuse. This was magnified for many in Māori, Rainbow and disabled groups, as religious teaching sometimes painted them as specific targets. Pacific peoples were also affected by the misuse of spiritual authority in unique ways. For many faith-based settings, this framing was woven into the purpose and systems of the institutions, which relied on their spiritual authority and standing in the community to legitimise their ‘care’ practices.

1015. The Inquiry heard of religious leaders taking advantage of the trust and vulnerability within pastoral care to sexually, psychologically, emotionally, and spiritually abuse survivors. Sexual abuse in pastoral care often involved grooming, particularly when survivors were in vulnerable states or when they were children.

1016. The abuse and neglect suffered in faith-based children’s homes and residences were similar to those experienced in social welfare homes and institutions, including psychological and physical abuse and neglect; being separated and isolated from their families and whānau; sexual abuse perpetrated by staff and peers; and, abuse being used to control and reform survivors.

1017. In unmarried mothers’ homes, the Inquiry heard that women and girls were subjected to psychological and physical abuse and neglect throughout their pregnancy and childbirth, including being demonised and degraded, denied adequate food, denied information about their medications and procedures, and being beaten during and after childbirth. Survivors were also pressured, bullied, or coerced into adopting out their babies.

1018. In faith-based education, survivors experienced similar abuse and neglect to those in faith-based residential settings. Boarding schools in particular were risky environments due to their regimented and closed nature, where staff had unrestricted access to students. Abuse was often justified as corporal punishment and discipline. In some schools, sexual abuse was pervasive and organised between staff members.

1019. The Inquiry heard of abuse and neglect occurring in Gloriavale Christian Community. Much of the abuse stemmed from the authoritarian control leadership had over the community and co-occurred with spiritual abuse. Survivors spoke about the psychological and spiritual abuse community leaders perpetrated, including through the use of shame, manipulation, humiliation, and isolation; the economic and educational neglect suffered; discrimination suffered by rainbow, Māori, and disabled survivors; and, the normalised and pervasive physical and sexual abuse.

Te tūkinotanga i ngā whakaritenga Turi, whaikaha, whaiora anō hoki
Abuse in Deaf, disability and mental health settings

1020. Disability and mental health settings include larger-scale institutions such as psychopaedic and psychiatric hospitals, smaller-scale care and support settings and services, including group homes, and certain education settings. Survivors of these settings experienced all forms of abuse and neglect, the most unique and pervasive being systemic neglect and the denial of personhood. Medicalisation and devaluation and dehumanisation of Deaf and disabled people, and people experiencing mental distress, overlaid much of the abuse and neglect.

1021. Most of the evidence the Inquiry has relating to these settings relates to the large-scale institutions. Survivors suffered systemic neglect of their personal needs, including their physical, emotional, psychological and developmental needs; dehumanising and degrading psychological abuse; medical abuse and neglect, including medications and tools being used to harm survivors and being denied informed consent to procedures; racial and cultural abuse; violent and pervasive sexual and physical abuse; and financial abuse.

1022. Abuse and neglect in closed settings, group homes and community care were also similar – but operated at a smaller scale - contributing to environments that also operated on control through disempowerment and fear. Survivors of these settings experienced emotional, psychological, developmental, physical, medical and cultural neglect; psychological abuse, particularly bullying; sexual and physical abuse; and financial abuse.

1023. For abuse in schools and units for Deaf children and young people, the Inquiry found most forms of abuse. A distinct element to abuse perpetrated in this setting that often directly targeted things that were fundamental to Deaf students, such as Sign Language and Deaf culture.

1024. The Inquiry found that in special schools and units, the nature of abuse was often tied to individuals’ conditions or impairments. Typically placed into these educational settings from a young age, survivors experienced the separation from their family, whānau and friends, and the wider community as a form of abuse and neglect.

Te tūkinotanga i ngā horopaki taurima i tua atu
Abuse in other care settings

1025. The abuse and neglect suffered at the hands of NZ Police, in prisons, and in health camps were similar to that in social welfare, faith, and disability and mental health settings. Survivors were subjected to degrading and violent abuse and neglect at the hands of authority figures who were responsible for their care.

Te tūkinotanga me te whakahapa i rāngona e ngā purapura ora Tākatāpui, Uenuku MVPFAFF+ hoki i te pūnaha taurima
Abuse and neglect experienced by Takatāpui, Rainbow and MVPFAFF+ survivors across care

1026. Takatāpui, Rainbow and MVPFAFF+ survivors experienced homophobic abuse, that was sometimes couched within religious abuse and justifications. Takatāpui, Rainbow and MVPFAFF+ children and young people were targeted due to their sexuality, gender expression or sex characteristics, and were more vulnerable to abuse.

1027. Some were subjected to conversion practices in psychiatric care and faith-based settings that were psychologically and often physically abusive. In faith-based settings, this also involved religious abuse, including reinforcement of the moral authority of religious leaders and the church. Survivors were made to feel like abominations.

Te tūkinotanga me te whakahapa i rāngona e ngā kōtiro me ngā wāhine i te pūnaha taurima
Abuse and neglect experienced by girls and women across care

1028. Women and girls experienced abuse specific to their gender and much of the abuse and neglect were layered with misogyny and sexism. Survivors spoke about being treated as promiscuous and dirty, and being shamed, degraded and demonised for their bodies and behaviours. These were experienced in the form of emotional and psychological abuse, including verbal abuse.

1029. The Inquiry also heard of abusive treatment that was justified through sexist means. Degrading, traumatic and invasive vaginal examinations in social welfare settings were an example of this – where young girls were physically, psychologically and often sexually and culturally abused through treatments. These examinations were undertaken on the assumption that girls in care were promiscuous and were infected with sexually transmitted diseases, even in cases where young girls told authorities that they had never had sex.

1030. The Inquiry also heard of instances where young girls were controlled through medication. This was experienced by both boys and girls in care but note that this was commonly experienced in an all-girls setting, Fareham House, which housed mostly Māori girls. The Inquiry considers this may have been discrimination based both on sexism and racism.

1031. In faith-based settings, female survivors were subjected to gendered verbal abuse particularly around body shaming, shaming around sexuality, or demonisation of health needs. Some were made to feel dirty for having their periods. In Gloriavale Christian Community at Haupiri on the West Coast, female survivors experienced educational neglect due to beliefs around gender roles.

1032. Gendered abuse was particularly evident in unmarried mothers’ homes, where young girls and women were demonised and subjected to verbal abuse such as gendered slurs, physical and financial abuse such as forced labour and beatings, medical abuse surrounding birth of babies, and psychological and emotional abuse through forced adoptions and coercion.

1033. Girls and women were neglected while in the unmarried mothers’ homes, including being withheld adequate food, withheld information about childbirth. The demonisation, dehumanisation, and subsequent abuse of girls and women in the homes were justified or reinforced by religious beliefs, particularly that the girls and women were sinners in need of reform.

1034. In disability and mental health settings, the Inquiry heard of women being forcibly sterilised, medicalised (including being given contraception without informed consent), as well as women being forced to have abortions – sometimes without their knowledge until after the procedure.

 

Footnotes