New Zealand’s state and religious institutions have mistreated more than 200,000 individuals, according to the final report of the Royal Commission of Inquiry Into Abuse in Care.
Physical and psychological violence, medical experiments, malnutrition, molestations, and electric shocks were all forms of abuse. Victims included several minors who had been forcibly removed from their homes and placed in foster care, religious institutions, or state institutions. At a cost of over $170 million, the inquiry was the most extensive and most costly in New Zealand’s history.
Victims of abuse often hail from marginalized or underprivileged populations, such as the Māori and Pacific peoples and individuals with disabilities. The results of the inquiry, therefore, provide reassurance to the people who have been up against religious solid and governmental authorities for some years. The investigation revealed that molestation was more common in religious organizations compared to public health facilities. In an effort to cover up the abuse, religious and civic authorities reportedly relocated the perpetrators and denied responsibility; as a result, many victims died before they could receive justice.
Public hearings for the probe began in 2018 and lasted for 100 days. Jacinda Ardern, the prime minister, described it as “a chance to confront our history and make sure we don’t make the same mistakes again.”
According to the inquiry’s findings, which were based on interviews with over 2,300 survivors, abuse and neglect almost always started from the first day.
At a faith-based orphanage, one victim named Anna Thompson described verbal and physical abuse to the commission. According to Jesse Kett’s evidence, other staff members would occasionally observe the beatings and molestations that occurred while he was eight years old at a residential school in Auckland.
Addressing the results, Prime Minister Christopher Luxon said that it was a dark day in New Zealand’s history. Despite the horrifying nature of many of the accounts, he was grateful to everyone who contributed.
Adverse effects such as increased healthcare expenditures (both mental and physical), homelessness, and criminality add up to an estimated economic cost of $217 billion due to abuse and neglect.
