Sharples Pita: Third Readings — 
Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume 
Sharples Pita: Third Readings — 
[Sitting date: 24 July 2007. Volume:640;Page:10645. Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume.] 
Dr PITA SHARPLES (Co-Leader—Maori Party) 
: 
Kua tau marika te wa kia tirohia nga huringa o te punaha ture taihara. Hei tera wiki hei tenei wa tonu ka kati nga tapaetanga mo tetahi arotakenga whanui i nga kaupapa here ma Aotearoa whanui. Ko ta te Komihana mo nga Tamariki i a ia e whakahe ana i ta Aotearoa Tuatahi pire tera e whakawakia ai e nga kooti nga tamariki i te wa e tino tamariki ana te hunga taiohi kia ata tautohetohetia nga take e pa ana ki Te Whai Ture mo nga Rangatahi. Kua whakautua e Te Komiti Uiui mo nga Take Maori ta Te Pati Maori kia kokiritia te rangahau e pa ana ki nga kaupapa katoa e hangai ana ki Te Tiriti o Waitangi a e whiriwhiri ana taua komiti i te rarangi o nga uiuitanga i tenei wa tonu. E uiui ana te katoa o te motu me pewhea nga kenge. I oti i Te Reo Irirangi Waatea he rangahau e whakaatu ana e 46 orau o te hunga i uiuitia e whakaaro ana me whakarongo tatau ki nga kenge ake kia taea e tatau te mahi tahi ki te whakakore i tenei mea tukinotanga. 
I waenga i te whakarongotanga i era tapaetanga me era arotakenga i tau mai a Angela Davis ki Aotearoa. I roto i tana pukapuka whakamutunga  
Kua kore he Take o nga Whareherehere? 
 ka kokiri mai a Ahorangi Davis i nga take hei tautoko i te mauheretanga kore—e akiaki ana i nga whenua o te ao ki te whakakore i te takahi i nga matatika tangata i roto i nga momo whareherehere kei reira te 9 miriona tangata e tukinotia ana. Ko tana e wero ana: “Kua whakahoahoatia nga momo whareherehere ki te whawhati i nga tangata kia huri ratau kia rite ki nga momo o tetahi whare kararehe—e tupou noa ana ki nga kaipupuri i nga ki engari ka noho tonu he mea tukino tetahi mauhere ki tetahi.” 
Heoi he aha te urupare e tika ana kia rere puta noa i Aotearoa mo te panga ki nga iwi katoa o te motu o te nui o te mauherehere? Ko nga pire e rima e tautohetohetia ana e tatau i te ra nei he huri i nga tikanga e pa ana ki nga whiu a-hapori ki te mauhere a-kainga ki te utu here ki nga ritenga tuku whakamatau me te whakatu Kaunihera Whakatau Whiu. Ko a matau i te wa e tere ana nga pire i te Whare Paremata he whakau i to matau hiahia kia matapakitia whanuitia e tatau katoa me mutu ta tatau whirinaki nui ki te mauheretanga ki te whakautu i nga hara. Na matau hoki i hura i te tauaki whakahurihuri tera i whakapaohotia e Te Tari Ture i roto i tana mahere mahi: Ehara i te te mea he tangata hara mehemea he tangata Maori.” 
Heoi ko te wero kei mua tonu i a tatau kia whakatauria enei pire hei ture ka pehea ka noho tonu ai enei matapono matua. Ka pehea tatau e noho nei hai whenua kotahi e aro ana ki te huarahi e kitea nei e tatau te maha rawa o te mahi hara o te whiu o te whakamauhere o te mahi hara ano? Ka pehea tatau e whakarite ai i tetehi punaha ture e whakakaupapatia ana ki te whakatika me te whakahoa kaua ki te whakawhiunga me te whai utu? Me pehea tatau e whakaohooho ai i nga iwi kia kitea ai ko nga kura me nga hapori ke nga kowhiringa mana kaua ko nga whareherehere me nga herenga pirihimana? Kia whakaturia he tahuhu rautaki e whakaritea ai ko te hauora me te painga o nga tangata katoa e noho matua ana kaua ko te pakanga hokeka ki te mauherehere i nga tangata ki ro rore? A i te wa e kaha tautohetohe ana ka pehea te wahi ki nga whanau ki nga hapu ki nga iwi e whakatakoto i te huarahi anga whakamua? 
Kua tautoko Te Pati Maori i nga huringa o nga ture punaha taihara hei whakau i ta matau e hiahia ana kia wehe tatau i te huarahi whiu aupehi kia huri ke ki nga kowhiringa whai tikanga whakahou. I pohiri matau ki te whakahoutanga tera i puta i te wahi ki nga whiriwhiringa a te komiti i enei pire e pa ana ki nga matatika o nga marurenga—he whakatauiratanga i ta te punaha whirirua whakatinahia ana. I whakaorangia o matau ngakau ki te kite i nga ropu katoa e whakaae ana me mau tonu i nga marurenga o ratau matatika o te wa nei. Ko te whakau i nga matatika o nga marurenga ki te puta i mua i te Poari Tuku Whakamatau he mea nui i roto i ta tatau tikanga kawantanga whai poti. 
E whakamaumahara ana matau i te Whare Paremata i nga whakaaro o te Kaiwhakawa a David Carruthers—ko te tiamana o te Poari Tuku Whakamatau o Aotearoa—ko ta te tupu tauirakore o nga mauhere e whakaatu mai ana ko te panga ki nga whanau kua noho hoki ko ratau he marurenga o nga hara i te wa kua ngaro tetahi o ratau i roto i nga whareherehere. 
Ko te rongoa matua e huri ai te punaha ture e whakamanahia ana e nga Pire e rima nei ko te Kaunihera Whakatau Whiu. E tautoko ana Te Pati Maori i te whakatunga o tenei taiwhanga hou e rite tonu ai te panga o te tika ahakoa ka whiua tetahi i Whangarei i Otepoti i Te Tonga o Tamaki-makau-rau i Te Wai Pounamu. E kaha nei ta matau whakahau ko te tohungatanga o te tangata whenua me noho matua i te wa e whiriwhirihia ana nga mema mo te Kaunihera nei. 
E hoki nei au ki oku whakaaro ki ta Ahorangi Davis i ki  
Kua kore he Take o nga Whareherehere? 
. E whakaarangia ake ana e ia te wero kua pera te tere o te tupu o te tauporitanga o nga whareherehere o Amerika kia penei ai tana korero: “Ka nui ake te tuponotanga he tokomaha nga tangata o nga hapori mangumangu Paniora tangata whenua ka mauheretia i era ka whai i te matauranga pai.” E toko ake ana te whakaaro e tere nei ta tatau whakaeke ki tera tuahuatanga i konei. I roto i te toru tau iti iho i peke te tokomaha o nga mauherehere Maori mai i te 2883 i te tau 2002 ki te 3481 i te tau 2005. Engari i taua wa tonu i roto i te purongo a-tau 2005-06 a Te Ara Poutama i kumea kia toru o nga kaupapa e rima i taea ai e nga whanau te whai panga ki nga mahi kia tautokohia ketia ko “etehi kaupapa nui ake”.  
Ko te uruparetanga te mea nui ko te whai wahi o te katoa i roto i taua uruparetanga ano hoki. Ki te piki haere te tokomaha o tetahi hapori e mauheretia ana he aha tatau e kore ai e patai ki taua hapori me pehea e kaupare atu ai te waipuke? Me matua whakarite te uruparetanga mo nga huarahi pai ake e whakaitia ai te maha o nga Maori e tukinotia ana e nga mahi hara. Me matua matapaki e tatau kia whiriwhiritia ai nga rautaki whai hua ki te whakaiti i te tokomaha o nga Maori e mauheretia ana e whiua ana e tukuna ana ki nga whareherehere i roto i te punaha ture. 
E tautoko marika ana matau i nga whakaaro o Ahorangi Davis e wero ana i te ahu mahi wharehere - te hangaanga e pupuri ana i te tokomaha o o tatau iwi ki te whai i te oranga wawata kore. Ko te whakahou i te Ture Taihara he mea me whai i nga tuahuatanga hou rawa kia hou ai o tatau whakaaro kia kaua nga ritenga mo te ture a-hapori e whakakaupapatia ki nga wharehere hei whakahaere hei whakatikatika ranei. 
E wawata ana matau ko nga amenamana ki te Ture Whakarite Whiu ma reira e tika ake ai te wahi ki te mauhere a-kainga ki nga whiunga a-hapori e heke iho ai te maha o nga mauheretanga. E kaha nei ta matau tautoko i te aronga ketanga ki te whakatupu o nga pukenga mahi tuapapa o nga pukenga whai oranga hei wahanga o te mauhere a-hapori me te tikanga mo te tino matakitakitanga. Tena koe Mr Speaker. 
[An interpretation in English was given to the House.] 
[ 
The time is absolutely right for looking at the reform of the criminal justice system. This time next week submissions close on a wide-scale review of the policing directions for New Zealand. The Children’s Commissioner in speaking of her opposition to New Zealand First’s bill to prosecute younger and younger children before the courts has called for a debate on youth justice. The Maori Affairs Committee has picked up the call from the Maori Party to initiate an inquiry into all aspects of the Treaty process and is currently considering the terms of reference. New Zealanders up and down the country are asking what we should do about gangs. A recent poll conducted on Radio Waatea concluded that 46 percent of those polled believed we should listen to gangs themselves to ensure that we can all work together to make the changes necessary for eliminating violence. 
In the midst of all these submissions and reviews Angela Davis walked into Aotearoa. In her recent book Is the Prison Obsolete? Professor Davis argues for “decarceration”—urging nations to confront the human rights catastrophe in our jails and prisons that is being experienced currently by some 9 million inmates. Her challenge is: “Jails and prisons are designed to break human beings to convert the population into specimens in a zoo—obedient to our keepers but dangerous to each other.” 
So what should be the conversation that we have in Aotearoa about the impact of mass incarceration on the populace? The suite of five bills we are debating today change procedures around community sentences home detention bail and parole conditions as well as the establishment of a Sentencing Council. Our contributions as the bills have proceeded through the House have emphasised our preference for instigating a wide-ranging discussion about how we can increase our over-reliance on the use of imprisonment as a response to crime. We also exposed the revolutionary statement issued by the Ministry of Justice in their programme of action: “Being Maori does not make a person an offender”. 
The challenge that remains therefore once this bill is passed and made into law is how to ensure that these two central principles are retained. How do we as a nation address the staggering rates of offending conviction incarceration and reoffending? How do we achieve a justice system based on reparation and reconciliation rather than retribution and vengeance? How do we actively inspire the people to hold a vision in which schools and communities are the most powerful alternative to jails and police cells—an overarching strategy in which the health and well-being of all citizens is our ultimate priority instead of the frenzied battle to lock people away in cages? And through all these debates what involvement will whanau hapu and iwi have in helping to set our direction forward? 
The Maori Party has supported the reform of criminal justice legislation in our commitment to move from a punitive and repressive regime towards restorative justice alternatives. We welcomed the innovation that took place at the committee stage of this Bill regarding victims rights—a model of MMP in action. It was heartening to see all parties agree to enable victims to attain their current rights. The endorsement of victims' rights to appear before the Parole Board is an important tenet of democracy. 
We remind the House too of the views of Judge David Carruthers the chair of the New Zealand Parole Board that the unprecedented growth in imprisonment numbers has also seen increasing impacts on family members who become in themselves victims of crime through losing one of their members to jail. 
The key measure to bring about change in the justice system as mandated by these five bills is the Sentencing Council. The Maori Party supports the establishment of this new forum to ensure a consistent application of justice whether one is sentenced in Whangarei or Dunedin; south Auckland or the South Island. But we hasten to suggest that tangata whenua expertise must be considered a core priority in considering the appointment of membership to the council. 
I return to the thoughts of Professor Davis in Are Prisons Obsolete?. She throws up the challenge that the population of the United States prisons has increased with such rapidity that “Many people in black Latino and Native American communities now have a far greater chance of going to prison than of getting a decent education.” I have to wonder whether we are fast approaching a similar situation here. In less than 3 years the total number of Maori inmates leapt from 2883 in 2002 to 3481 in 2005. Yet in this same time period the 2005-06 annual report for the Department of Corrections withdrew three of the five initiatives for whanau involvement projects due to a “shift in focus” for “initiatives of a higher priority” 
So what should be the conversation that we have in Aotearoa about the impact of mass incarceration on the populace? It is all about having the debate—and making sure that we are all part of that debate. If numbers are rising from a particular community why not ask that community for ideas about how to stem the tide? We need to see the debate take place about the best ways to rapidly reduce the number of Maori who are victimised by offending behaviour. We need to see the debate happen about the most effective strategies to reduce the number of Maori who are arrested convicted and imprisoned through the criminal justice system. 
We absolutely endorse the sentiments of Professor Davis in confronting the prison industrial complex—the structure that is restricting so many of our people into lives without hope. Criminal justice reform should include radical reforms of our thinking wherein the notion of social justice is not reliant on the institution of the jail for methods of control and punishment. Criminal justice reform should include radical reforms of our thinking wherein the notion of social justice is not reliant on the institution of the jail for methods of control and punishment. 
We are hopeful that the amendments to the Sentencing Act around home detention and community-based sentences may provide greater incentive for reducing the incarceration rate over time. We strongly support the increased emphasis accorded to the acquisition of basic work and life skills as part of community detention and intensive supervision. Thank you Mr Speaker. 
]