Oranga Tamariki
[649 words]
English
Māori
Today I stand here as the Chief Executive of
Tēnei au te Tumu Whakarae o Oranga Tamariki
Oranga Tamariki, on behalf of numerous others e tū nei ki te whakakanohi i te huhua i noho mai
that have held this seat before me and led
ki tēnei tūranga me te whakahaere i ngā
Ministries for Children known by many other
Manatū Tamariki i ngā tau maha kua hori.
names.
I stand here on their behalf, to take
Ko au tēnei e tū nei ki te mau i ngā hara katoa e
responsibility and to unreservedly apologise to
tika ai, e pono ai te tuku whakapahā atu ki ngā
the survivors of those who were abused in the
mōrehu o te hunga i tūkinohia kinotia i a rātou
care of the state.
e noho ana ki ngā ringaringa o te Kāwana.
You were children who came into our care. You He tamariki koutou i hau mai ki a mātou kia
needed us to protect you. To look after you.
manaakitia, kia raupīhia e mātou. Kia
matainaina koutou ki te aroha, ki te atawhai.
Instead our people and our places harmed you. Heoi anō ko tā ā mātou tāngata me ā mātou
ratonga he tūkino, he takahi kē i a koutou.
IN-CONFIDENCE
You were subjected to physical, sexual and
I tūkinotia koutou ā-tinana, ā-wairua, ā-
verbal abuse, neglect, assault, violence and
hinengaro anō hoki. I pāwherangia te tapu o te
humiliation. And what is worse is we would
tangata, i takahia te mana, ka noho ko riri, ko
often turn around and place the blame back on whakamā, ko rukupō hei kai mā koutou ao noa,
you.
pō noa. Nā wai i hē, ka hē kē atu i tā mātou
tuku i te hara ki a koutou.
We are sorry for our failure to do right by you.
E whakapāha ana mātou i te korenga o mātou i
For not protecting you, and for failing to keep
whakatutuki i ā mātou haepapa ki a koutou. Mō
you safe. Nothing that happened to you was
te korenga o mātou i manaaki i a koutou, ka
your fault – it was ours.
tuku noa i a koutou hei papa. Nō mātou tonu te
hē.
You were children, just kids. You had a right to a He tamariki noa koutou. Kāore i whāngaihia ki
childhood fil ed with smiles and love, connected te hari, ki te aroha. Kāore te tuakiri i popoia e
to your culture, at home at your marae. A
mātou, kāore i tukuna ki ō koutou marae. Kāore
childhood where you looked forward to ice
koutou i rongo i ngā reka o Hineraumati, kāore i
creams in the summer, bike rides around your
kai aihikirīmi, i eke pahikara ki ō hoa, kāore hoki
neighbourhood with your friends, birthdays and i whakanui i ō huringa tau, i te Kirihimete rānei.
Christmas.
This is not the childhood we provided for you.
Ehara tēnei i ō koutou wheako. I kāwhakina
We took that from you and gave you a
kētia e mātou ērā āheinga i a koutou. Kāore i
childhood full of fear.
tau ki a mahara. Ka tau kē ko pōuri, ko hopo, ko
mataku.
Fear to be alone, to go to bed at night. Fear of
He mataku ki te ao. He mataku ki te noho
authority because they were the ones that hurt takitahi. He mataku ki te mana whakahaere, he
you the most. Fear that no one would believe
kaha nō tana tūkino i a koutou. He māharahara
you, fear that no one was coming to help you.
nui e kore ai pea te tangata e whakapono atu ki
Fear for what could happen today, tomorrow,
a koutou, kīhai rānei mō te āwhina i a koutou.
next week.
He māharahara nui ki tēnei rā, ki te āpōpō, ki ā
tērā wiki anō hoki.
You were frightened, scared. And that was our
I mataku rawa atu koutou, nā mātou.
fault.
E whakapāha ana mātou mō te korenga o
We are sorry for failing to provide you with a
mātou i whakaae kia wheakohia e koutou te
childhood that you deserved, that every child in momo oranga ko tōna tikanga i wheakohia ai e
Aotearoa is entitled too.
ngā tamariki puta noa i Aotearoa.
You wanted a family, a whānau, a place to
I te pīrangi koutou ki te whai whānau. I te
belong. I could not imagine a world where I
pīrangi koutou ki te whai tūrangawaewae.
would not do everything humanly possible to
Kāore he mahi tē mahia e au kia haumaru ai aku
protect my kids from harm.
tamariki.
The state care system should have cared for you Tōna tikanga i pērā hoki tā te pūnaha manaaki
in the same way.
tamariki tiaki i a koutou.
IN-CONFIDENCE
It didn’t.
Auare ake.
We put in you places and cal ed them homes –
Nā mātou koutou i tuku ki ētahi wāhi me te
but they were the furthest thing from what a
whakataruna anō he kāinga, engari kē ia ko te
home should be.
mutunga kē mai o te tauaro o te kāinga.
When you asked for help – we did not listen.
Ka tono āwhina ana koutou. Nōhea mātou i
whakarongo.
When you showed us the bruises – we looked
Ka whakaatu mai ana koutou i ngā mamae.
away.
Nōhea mātou i aro.
When you wanted a place to belong – we left
Ka tono kāinga ana koutou. Nōhea mātou i
you all alone.
rapu.
We are sorry for failing to give you a safe place
E whakapāha ana mātou mō te korenga o
to grow up, for not treating you like you were
mātou i whakarite wāhi haumaru mō koutou.
one of our own kids. We are sorry for not
Mō te korenga o mātou i manaaki i a koutou me
listening, for looking away and leaving you all
he tamariki koutou nā mātou. Mō te korenga o
alone.
mātou i whakarongo, i aro, i noho tahi rānei ki a
koutou.
I wil not stand here today and be dishonest by
Tino kore nei au mō te tū ki mua i a koutou me
saying that harm no longer occurs in our
te kī kua mutu ngā mahi tūkino a te punaha. He
system, we know we have work to do to make
nui tonu ngā mahi kei mua i a mātou e haumaru
sure every child is safe and has the care they
ai ngā tamariki katoa, e tika ai anō hoki te
deserve.
manaakitia o rātou.
But I wil stand here and say this.
Engari, ka tū tonu au ki mua i a koutou me te kī
pēnei.
The care system today has changed. Most wil
Kua panoni haere te pūnaha manaaki tamariki.
argue that it has not changed enough. And we
Kāore e kore ka tohea te nui rānei o ērā
agree.
panonitanga, me te tika hoki o tērā whakaaro.
Moving forward, it is this report that will keep
Haere nei te wā, mā tēnei pūrongo mātou e
us relentlessly focused on the change you have mātua aro ai ki ngā panonitanga kua roa nei
called for. It will be your words that will remind koutou e pakanga ana. Ko ā koutou kupu tonu
us of the need to demand more, to demand
hei whakamaumahara i a mātou ki te tohe tonu
better and not to settle for a system that
i te tohe, ki te pakanga tonu i te pakanga me te
silences the voices of children and young
kore i noho taurekareka, i tūpou rānei ki tētahi
people who need us to listen.
pūnaha e whakawahangū ana i ngā reo o te
hunga e matainaina ana ki te taringa.
Today, I want to talk about the change I think
I tēnei rā, kei te pīrangi au ki te kōrero mō ngā
matters most.
panonitanga matua ki a au.
The reason why survivors shared their stories.
Koia tonu te take i tuarihia mai e ngā mōrehu ā
rātou kōrero.
IN-CONFIDENCE
To make the future safer for children.
Hei whakahaumaru i te anamata mō ngā
tamariki.
If any child, or young person, tel s us they are
Ki te whāki mai tētahi tamaiti, taiohi rānei i ōna
not safe. If they share with us stories of harm,
māharahara, i ōna kōrero tūkino, mamae,
of hurt, or fear –we wil stand by their side, we
whakamataku rānei, ka tautokona ia e mātou.
will listen to them, like we should have listened Ka whakarongo mātou ki a ia. Ka kore a muri e
you.
hokia.
To every survivor, and every person who did not Ki ngā mōrehu, me te hunga i riro.
survive.
To the children who we failed,
Ki ngā tamariki i noho hei papa i ā mātou mahi,
To the adults those children have now become. Ki tērā hunga tamariki kua pakeke ināianei.
We are sorry.
Tēnei te ngākau ka takapau ki a koutou.
