TU TIKA! STILL STANDING

Now that James Parker has plead guilty to all the charges of child sex abuse laid against him, and as a follow up to the Hikoi Against Child Abuse of all forms that we held earlier this year, a nationwide but informal group has been established of which I am a part. 

We are called Tu Tika and our goals are to be an independent lobby and voice for the rights of children, and to hold those institutions which are supposed to protect children accountable. 

The strategies and solutions that we are currently working on include holding silent vigils outside Courts whenever child abuse cases are being heard.  We want to keep the issue in the forefront of our own minds and those of our people.  Coupled with public awareness handouts, our vigils will be a reminder that the concession of guilt by one monster does not mean there aren’t more out there.

We will seek to meet with local school, church, sport and community organisation boards regarding their child protection policy development AND implementation.  There’s no doubt in our minds that had the employers and supervisors of James Parker implemented their school policies, many of his victims might have been saved.

We are asking local and regional newspapers to provide us a monthly column space  under the banner of ‘Tu Tika’ where we can raise and address the issues that give rise to the terribly high level of child abuse amongst us.

Additionally each of us are developing relevant resources that can be used by individuals, whānau, hapū, iwi and communities in our regions to educate themselves and others about the issues and what can help address them. 

We’ve set 13th March as an annual nationwide hikoi date to refocus attention on the fact that, although the problem and its causes are undoubtedly universal , the solutions have to be tailored, owned and delivered locally.  

To support our work, we’ve established an annual Tu Tika hui to review progress and revise strategies.  The first of these is planned to be held in Kaitāia this year.

On a personal level, right now I’ve chosen to undertake training via wānanga that are based on our Māori qualification framework and not on that of NCEA.  Why?  Because increasing the numbers of NCEA qualified Māori professionals hasn’t eliminated or even reduced the problem of child abuse one iota; in fact, quite the reverse. 

To my mind, NCEA qualifications don’t and can’t address the reality that, although the problem of child abuse is not a Māori problem, it is one that has hurt many of us and still does. 

Mauri Ora qualifications do address and penetrate that reality with the tikanga that we cannot usefully confront any problem until we confront ourselves, we cannot clean up someone else’s backyard if our own are paru, and before we work with anyone else’s whānau, we had better be prepared to work with our own. 

Tu tika!