NZ Herald editorial: Pressure grows for inquiry into abuse in state care

Support is growing for a broad inquiry into the abuse of Kiwis in state care. Photo / 123RF

There have now been a series of reports detailing the abuse of New Zealanders while in the care of the state.

All make for unsettling reading, and together reveal that, at least in the past, individuals in state care were often exposed, unsafe, vulnerable and suffered harm. Places that were meant to be havens of safety were settings for oppression.

The numbers covered are considerable. Between 1950 and 1980, more than 100,000 children and vulnerable adults were placed in state institutions, including special schools, foster homes and psychiatric hospitals.

The latest report, Institutions are places of abuse, is distressing because its subjects are intellectually disabled, a group largely invisible from the other narratives. It covers the experiences of 17 New Zealanders and details unacceptable - and possibly unlawful - physical, psychological, sexual and financial mistreatment.

There are memories of constant fear, of a woman tied to a bed, another explaining how she felt like a slave and one recounting that, while in seclusion, she drank her own urine.

The men and women recall being cold and neglected, of having no one to lean on, of being forgotten by their families, and being ignored after hurting themselves.

If a society is judged by how it treats its most vulnerable, then the experiences of John, Robert, Avis and the other courageous New Zealanders whose stories are told in the new report show the state fell short of its duty of care.

The report makes the claim that the abuse was systemic, and that those in charge knew it was going on but did nothing to stop it.

It is difficult to test this assertion - those in charge of the institutions have long moved on. But the Government has paid $24.4 million to settle 1400 claims since 2004. Private apologies have been tended, and hundreds more claims are unresolved.

Those who compiled the reports make two requests: they want an apology to those mistreated in care, and they urge that nothing short of a sweeping inquiry can draw a line under the misdeeds of the past to ensure they are not repeated.

There is political support for these demands but not from the Government, which has so far resisted the growing pressure.

The Government's unstated but understandable objection would seem to be cost. Even though widespread abuse has been detailed in the reports, its very nature means that what has so far been revealed could be the surface wounds of far deeper injuries.

That would appear to explain the reluctance in Wellington to resist the Human Rights Commission campaign for a formal inquiry, and possibly open the door to yet more claims.

Last week there was a hint that Prime Minister Bill English may be shifting in his stance, saying he was interested in additional steps to help victims of abuse.

Other Western countries, including Australia, Canada, Ireland and Britain, have gone down the formal inquiry path. All had similar institutional arrangements in the decades where abuse in state care seemed rife.

Paul Gibson, whose term as Disability Rights Commissioner ended with the release of the latest report, says he wanted to reassure disabled New Zealanders and their families that the years of abuse were over. But without a thorough inquiry, he was unable to provide that comfort.

It is now up to the Prime Minister whether to take the additional steps.