Public Address | Cafe | Access: The stories the Royal Commission needs to hear about state care abuse and disability

Hilary Stace

Tue, 12 Mar 2019 15:02:16 +1300

The Royal Commission is establishing a survivor panel. Applications open till the end of the month
https://www.abuseinstatecare.royalcommission.govt.nz/News

Hilary Stace

Sun, 24 Feb 2019 11:57:07 +1300

Today's article in the Sunday Star Times by Andrea Vance shows another reason why many abuse survivors distrust the state and its agencies such as Crown Law. The state's resources were used on surveillance of Keith Wiffin in earlier attempts to seek justice for survivors.

https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/110721947/state-abuse-survivor-in-spying-scandal-says-govt-lawyers-set-out-to-vilify-him

Hilary Stace

Sun, 06 Jan 2019 20:44:09 +1300

In 1972 there was a Royal Commission which looked at the situation with psychiatric and psychopaedic hospitals. The incoming Labour Government disestablished it and transferred it to a select committee investigation, basically saying get on with de-institutionalisation. The Commissioners decided to publish their recommendations on the 'mentally handicapped' anyway as…

Hilary Stace

Fri, 04 Jan 2019 13:17:21 +1300

Disability neglect sadly continues. Distressed to hear about the so called carer of a high needs woman who, in a 6 hour day shift, spoke only a couple of sentences to her, offered no food/drink or help with toileting and watched loud videos with violence and swearing while ignoring her…

Rosemary McDonald

Sun, 23 Dec 2018 13:53:17 +1300

(that is a story for the memoirs, maybe).

There must be some use for the 2x60l plastic crates of printouts we've managed to accumulate over the years. Just the OIA request proceeds alone take up half a crate. Absolutely amazing how much space seems to be needed to essentially say…

Hilary Stace

Sun, 23 Dec 2018 10:23:42 +1300

Thanks for finding that link Rosemary. And congratulations with the victory (that is a story for the memoirs, maybe).

Just realised that in the post I made a mistake with the closure of Kimberley. It was 2006 not 2004. And I have been told that in the 1960s the State…

Rosemary McDonald

Wed, 19 Dec 2018 21:56:58 +1300

Hiya Caro13.

Extraordinary Journeys.

All the best with yours.

Caro13

Wed, 19 Dec 2018 20:51:54 +1300

I have a redacted file but getting anyone to really help and negotiate adequate contact seems impossible. There doesn't have to be actual physical/emotional abuse for a 'surendered' child to feel abandoned and undervalued. The right of the parent to remain anonymous seems to overrule the needs of the child.…

Hilary Stace

Wed, 19 Dec 2018 20:13:49 +1300

Finding files for survivors should be a part of this process.

Some years ago Spectrum Care, a provider organisation, compiled a book of stories of some of the people who had come into their care since the institutions closed. The book was called Extraordinary Journeys and was an attempt to…

Caro13

Wed, 19 Dec 2018 18:46:49 +1300

Is there anyway to reunite the children put into state care in the 70s? Those that weren't adopted have very few avenues to try and find their birth parent, is this something that is being addressed in this process?

Hilary Stace

Tue, 18 Dec 2018 17:29:40 +1300

I'm not sure about exact details but some children were sent to special schools or orphanages run by faith-based organisations. Sometimes families retained welfare guardianship such as with residential special schools but as the State had oversight of these places via licensing and inspection etc and let abuse happen the…

Craig Young

Tue, 18 Dec 2018 13:33:33 +1300

To which extent were state institutional responsibilities for care shared with religious institutions such as the Catholic or other churches?

Sacha

Tue, 18 Dec 2018 11:05:53 +1300

She uses precisely the same sentence in both.

"was developed in 1960s New Zealand"
cf
"was a New Zealand invention in the 1960s."

No biggie, just my mind read them differently.

Hilary Stace

Tue, 18 Dec 2018 07:52:52 +1300

Yes, in those days we had government departments – departments of Government.. The monolithic ministries didn't come till the 1980s/90s. There were also varieties of inspection in these departments. However, I have talked to people who had some of these roles and they were not always aware of or alerted…

Joe Wylie

Tue, 18 Dec 2018 05:53:04 +1300

Though I did not understood it was an NZ invention rather than something we copied:

The profession of psychopaedic nurse (specialists in nursing intellectually disabled children) was developed in 1960s New Zealand
Are you quoting Hilary Stace's latest article, or the earlier one from 2014? She uses precisely the same…

Sacha

Tue, 18 Dec 2018 00:14:21 +1300

Hilary Stace posted that info here over four years ago.

Though I did not understood it was an NZ invention rather than something we copied:

The profession of psychopaedic nurse (specialists in nursing intellectually disabled children) was developed in 1960s New Zealand.

Hilary Stace

Mon, 17 Dec 2018 19:57:07 +1300

Good question. Social Welfare and Health I suspect. Some via Education. Government Departments weren't so silo'd in those days so I suspect there were many ways of uplifting children and making them the property of the State. I hope the Royal Commission investigates such questions and sorts out the tangled…

Joe Wylie

Mon, 17 Dec 2018 19:25:56 +1300

Crikey. Not heard of that before...
Hilary Stace posted that info here over four years ago.

Sacha

Mon, 17 Dec 2018 16:57:17 +1300

Huge. Which part/s of the govt's Budgets did their funding come from in those days?

Hilary Stace

Mon, 17 Dec 2018 15:21:07 +1300

There was a major push for increasing the size and scope of the psychopaedic institutions following the Government's 1953 Aitken report, even though that was already against international WHO best practice. The stroppy parents who founded the IHC in 1949 lobbied hard for this committee which they hoped would instead…

Sacha

Mon, 17 Dec 2018 12:29:35 +1300

the profession of specialist psychopaedic nurse (nurses for children with intellectual or learning disability or other impairments in the institutions) was a New Zealand invention in the 1960s.

Crikey. Not heard of that before but it really does show the scale of residential services.

Public Address

Mon, 17 Dec 2018 12:29:34 +1300

Discussion from blog post.