Sio Su'a William: Child and Family Protection Bill — Second Reading 
Sio Su'a William: Child and Family Protection Bill — Second Reading 
[Volume:666;Page:13869] 
SU’A WILLIAM SIO (Labour—Mangere) 
: 
 Labour supports the Child and Family Protection Bill. Labour supports any measure that aims to mitigate and prevent the harm of domestic violence. However Labour would say to this Government that this bill is not ambitious enough for our children. Labour believes that this bill is not ambitious enough about protecting children who are the victims of domestic violence. So although Labour supports this legislation we believe that the Government can and should be doing more to mitigate and prevent domestic violence. 
I would like to share some statistics on domestic violence in New Zealand that highlight the point we are making—that the Government can and should be doing more to prevent domestic violence. In 2008 the police responded to about 83000 incidents involving some form of domestic violence. Four to 10 percent of New Zealand children experience physical abuse; 24 percent of girls and 11 percent of boys experience sexual abuse. In 2007 6400 children were involved in applications for protection orders. Most of those children had witnessed violence. Some had been subjected to violence directly themselves. So New Zealand’s domestic violence rates do not compare well with other OECD countries and we have the worst rate in the world of child death by maltreatment. A recent report commissioned by Every Child Counts found that child abuse and neglect in New Zealand costs around $2 billion per year. 
These statistics would probably mean more to members of the House if one were to sit down and talk to the children who are the victims of domestic violence. Yesterday the Social Services Committee visited a local organisation that provides support encouragement counselling and indeed love to a group of young men who range in age from 12 to 19 years. Members of the committee heard firsthand the horrific stories of young children. One as young as 4 years old was left to look after younger siblings. They had been abandoned by their parents who were out on a drinking spree and left to fend for themselves with no food in the cupboards. We heard terrible stories and graphic detail of how children were beaten up sexually abused or witnessed the degrading of their mother. 
I apologise to the House in advance but I would like to share some of the stories of the lives of some of these children who are victims of domestic violence just to make the point. One young man revealed how at night a wahine as he described it would enter his bedroom and sexually abuse him. He prays to God for help. God does not answer him and the abuse continues. This young man now hates God. Another said that whenever his dad was drunk the son would have to sit on the laps of his dad’s friends and he would massage each of his father’s friends. He was 6 years old. He hates his father but he also needs him. Another young boy at 9 years old was raped by his mother’s boyfriend. The boyfriend pushed his head into the mattress and said: “I’m doing this to teach you to respect me.” His mum does not want to know what happened. The boy wishes his dad were alive so he could do something about this guy. 
There were also stories of how these young children witnessed the degrading of their mothers. One boy described how his dad tried to kill his mum by pouring gasoline on her while they watched. Their mum is depressed and shuts them out now. Another boy described how his dad gave his mum a beating and she was bleeding all over. This was when he was only 4 years old. His father made him clean up all the blood. Another terrible story I heard yesterday was about a father who likes getting drunk and who beats up his wife and forces her to prostitute. Whenever she finishes taking men the father insists on knowing all the graphic details of what they did. One time the father forced the mother to have sex with a dog while he watched. The young daughter who witnessed all this later in life became a prostitute herself and would beat up the men she was with. She ended up going too far and killed a man and now she is in prison. Yet another story just as horrible is that of a 6-year-old who was beaten by her mother because she could not read. When she played with matches she was threatened with burning by having her hand held over a lit stove. At 7 years old her father sold her so he could buy alcohol and she was raped 40 times. 
I have recited these stories to underscore how important it is to be ambitious about protecting children from domestic violence and abuse. These stories come from Maori Pakeha and Pacific kids. I highlight that fact as there are many myths about domestic violence. When we read letters in newspapers or blogs on the Internet or listen to radio talkback shows we hear a host of myths about domestic violence being regularly promoted. They include suggestions that only drunk or mentally ill men are violent. Others blame women for staying in abusive relationships or provoking the violence against them. The reality is that although some who perpetuate domestic violence are drunks many are not; some abusers are mentally ill but many are not. But most of all responsibility for abuse must lie with the person who is abusing others. No one ever deserves to be abused struck or beaten. 
One myth that has proved particularly stubborn to shift has been the suggestion that domestic violence occurs in certain sectors of society and not in others. It is often suggested that domestic violence is something that occurs only in poor neighbourhoods or in Maori and Pacific families. However as at least one high-profile domestic violence case in recent times has shown men who physically abuse their partners and children come from all occupations classes religions and ethnicities. Although domestic violence occurs in Maori Pakeha Asian and Pacific families that does not mean that any one-size-fits-all approach is called for. Domestic violence whether one is Pakeha or Pasifika Maori or Asian is never right. At a Pacific Champions of Change: National Fono on Stopping Violence earlier this year the Governor-General made these remarks: “Cultural norms can never be used as an excuse for violence whether that be within the family or elsewhere. To those who would argue otherwise I would respond that the ‘tradition’—and I place the words in quotes—has either been twisted and misinterpreted or simply has no place in New Zealand society. Using a supposed cultural norm as what can be described as a kind of ‘fig leaf’ for domestic violence does more than just disempower victims. It attempts to co-opt the wider cultural and ethnic group into condoning violence and debases that culture’s proud history and traditions and as such it brings shame on everyone.” 
I come back to my former point and where I began. What I have attempted to highlight is that we have a problem. It is a national problem. It needs to be a collective problem. That is why Labour is supporting this bill. But I say to members on that side of the House that they need to reconsider and look further into the bill that the honourable senior Labour members introduced. That will give some indication to the Minister and the Government of how we can better improve this bill and be ambitious about protecting our kids. That is what we strongly recommend to this Parliament. 
Finally—and I note that my time is up—YouthLaw Tino Rangatiratanga Taitamariki made a submission which I simply want to highlight because it is significant and we support it. The bill needs to amend the definition of child within the Domestic Violence Act to include young people under the age of 18. That brings us into line with the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child.