August 12, 2016
Colonisation linked to child abuse
A researcher into Maori whanau says the Government’s plans for a new vulnerable children’s service are another form of colonialism.
Rihi Te Nana, the national Maori development manager at Relationships Aotearoa, says the reform of child, youth and family services hasn’t given enough weight to the desire of iwi to take back their children.
She says the state’s record of looking after Maori children is one of failure and abuse, but it’s Maori who are put under the microscope for abuse.
Ms Te Nana says there’s a denial of history.
"We didn’t just wake up and decide we were going to be bad people. We have beenn systematically through policy,through legislation, dealt a deal of demise really. Policies that stopped us speaking our language. Policies that saw our land being deliberately stolen. Policies that prevented us maintaining our own cultural knowledge," she says.
Rihi Te Nana says the longer Maori remain in state care, the more likely their life outcomes will continue to diminished.
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