Sasha Borissenko: Tiptoeing past conflicts in the Royal Commission into abuse in state care

Former inmate Arthur Taylor has been tasked with setting the scene at this hearing by describing his traumatic experiences at the hands of the state. Photo/Dean Purcell

The first public hearing of the Royal Commission into abuse in state care and faith-based institutions is set to start on October 29. The draft Terms of Reference were given a lot of flak for being drafted by Crown Law - the very institution that will be subject to investigation.

Crown Law drafted the initial terms but any chance of a conflict of interest was eradicated and mitigated by the rigorous consultation and submission process, an Abuse In Care Inquiry spokesperson said.

The process included input from more than 400 survivors, interested parties and the New Zealand public, and the terms were expanded - to include faith-based institutions, for example - as a result. And although the Terms of Reference dictate that the Royal Commission's scope would be for the years 1950-1999, it had discretion to look beyond those dates.

My thinking is, if Crown Law didn't draft the initial terms, who would? And suppose there was no cut-off date, would there be any resolve in the next century?

I spoke to Arthur Taylor, who has been tasked with setting the scene at this hearing by describing his traumatic experiences at the hands of the state. He's famous within legal circles, perhaps because he's survived the nickname '"jailhouse lawyer" without having to bear the brunt of the Law Society for failing to have a practicing certificate, or any legal training at all.

[As an aside, I asked him whether he intended to complete an LLB and the answer was no. "I don't need to. I've already got the proven ability. I'm still assimilating into society but under the Corporations Act I can represent corporations in court, no issue, which is the plan."]

He had no dealings with the law - except to return a police helmet he found outside - before going to Epuni Boys' home. He'd wagged school, and was taken from his family when he was 11. He went to the "care and protection" facility another two times, and witnessed sexual violence, abuse, and extreme bullying. He was reluctant to go into detail.

Ddata show 78.7 per cent of people under the age of 20 who started a sentence with Corrections in 2018, had a 'care and protection' or Youth Justice background.

"Ironically I went there because I bunked school but there was no schooling there. I tried escaping a couple of times, because I wanted to go back home. That's the thing. These kids shouldn't have been taken from their families, unless of course they were in danger."

"I truly believe it's responsible for me ending up in the justice system. And you go into any prison in New Zealand and there'll be screeds of Epuni Boys for sure.

Minor offences turned into bigger ones, and little criminals turned into big criminals, he said. "You become desensitised. Slowly the barriers started to diminish. One day you'd be trying to escape to go home to your family, and the next you'd be stealing a car."

"It's our version of the stolen generation. About 100,000 of them have gone through the residential care system. The powers that be have a lot to answer for."

In fact, 2019 Department of Corrections data showed 78.7 per cent of people under the age of 20 who started a sentence with Corrections in 2018, had a "care and protection" or Youth Justice background.

"I don't think the state planned to destroy my life, but had I not gone there I'm sure I could have had a much different life." With almost 40 years in prison under his belt, it was a pretty grand statement for one of New Zealand's longest inmates on record."

He is however hopeful "because we've got no other option". In his case, the state are entitled to have legal representation. The issue of compensation across the board, however, is still up for debate.

According to an Abuse In Care Inquiry spokesperson, the Royal Commission will make recommendations to the Government about compensation options for the future.

Redress, on the other hand, is an investigation that will run through the whole process. Specifically, the March 2020 public hearing will investigate and determine whether the Crown has previously responded appropriately to civil claims of abuse in state care, she said.

Companies trademarking national treasures poo-pooed

Meanwhile, the New Zealand public (well, Twitterati) went batty over Air NZ having the gall to try and trademark a variety of "Kia Ora" during Te Wiki o Te Reo Māori Language Week.

The airline made the application to the NZ Intellectual Property Office in mid-May, and was one of 400 registered trademarks or applications that related to the phrase. But, it was an application to trademark the specific design and logo, and not the phrase, the company insisted.

This isn't the first time companies have attempted to culturally appropriate - I mean, trademark national treasures, as it were.

There's a vaping product by UK company AMC (Acapella Mod Co) Ltd, titled "Haka Legend" and sports the Toi Tangata design, US software company Libline attempted to trademark the name "Koha", and Fonterra named a cheese after Māori ancestor Tuteremoana.

But all is not lost, as Cadbury parent company Mondelez International gave up its trademark, which was, well, the colour purple.