On Wednesday, 22nd of March, members of No Pride in Prisons will present a submission at parliament on the Children, Young Persons and Their Families (Oranga Tamariki) Legislation Bill.
“Key clauses of this legislation are fundamentally racist and will result in Māori children being removed from their whānau,” says No Pride in Prisons Parliamentary Advocacy Coordinator Kate McIntyre. “The state care system is already rife with abuse and mistreatment as it is.”
“Many who survive state care later end up in prison. Taken as it is, this bill will serve to funnel young Māori into the prison system, so it is vital that we intervene now to put a stop to it.”
The submission is based on an argument that the bill contradicts both national and international law.
“This bill is in violation of Te Tiriti o Waitangi and the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, to which the New Zealand government is a signatory,” McIntyre says. “By weakening priority to keep children raised within their whānau, hapū, and iwi, the state denies Māori the right to tino rangatiratanga as it relates to the capacity for Māori to raise their own children.”
“We are proud to stand in solidarity with Hands Off Our Tamariki, and everyone else who made submissions in opposition to the attempted removal of whānau first priority.”
