The Abuse in Care Royal Commission of Inquiry today delivered its interim report, He Purapura Ora, he Māra Tipu – From Redress to Puretumu to the Governor-General, The Rt Hon Dame Cindy Kiro.

The Royal Commission is grateful to survivors, their whānau and their advocates who have courageously shared their experiences to inform the report.

“We are indebted to the hundreds of survivors who have contributed to this work. We honour their courage and their strength,” said Commission Chair Coral Shaw.

“The harrowing experiences we’ve heard from survivors so far make it crystal clear — we as a country must do better to care for our children, young people and vulnerable adults. We need urgent change, to do right for survivors of abuse in care.”

He Purapura Ora, he Māra Tipu makes findings and recommendations on how the Government and faith-based institutions can address the harm suffered by children, young people and vulnerable adults in the care of State and faith-based institutions.

Work to inform the report includes:

• 15 weeks of public hearings
• hundreds of face-to-face survivor accounts heard by Commissioners
• input from the Royal Commission's survivor advisory groups SAGE and Te Taumata
• evaluation of 170 witness statements
• analysis of more than 150,000 documents
• hui and wānanga with experts and leaders from Māori, Pacific and Deaf and disabled communities
• 120 public submissions on reform of out-of-court redress processes
• meetings with multiple government agencies
• review of redress schemes in other countries.

“We encourage the Government to consider our findings with urgency and act promptly on our recommendations,” said Coral Shaw.

The Inquiries Act 2013 sets out that the next step is for the appropriate minister (Minister of Internal Affairs) to present the report to the House of Representatives as soon as practicable. The report is expected to be tabled in the House in mid-December and following that it will be made public.

About the Inquiry

The Abuse in Care Royal Commission of Inquiry is investigating the abuse of children, young people and vulnerable adults within State and faith-based institutions in Aotearoa New Zealand between 1950-1999. We can also learn from the experiences of survivors who have been in care after 1999, to make recommendations to help stop abuse happening in the future.

The Royal Commission is due to deliver its final report in June 2023.

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