Oranga Tamariki withhold iwi info as means to protect privacy of ancestors

Friday, 19 October 2018

Providing safety for children and young people at risk of serious harm is part of the mandate of Oranga Tamariki.

As a show of respect to its Māori clients, the state's welfare agency has withheld information relating to iwi affiliation in order to protect the privacy of their ancestors.

A request to Oranga Tamariki, made under the Official Information Act by Stuff, was lodged asking for a breakdown of the iwi affiliation for children and young people in the organisation's custody.

About 60 per cent of the 6000 children in Oranga Tamariki's care are Māori.

Along with a numerical breakdown of iwi membership, a request was also made for the number of children in state care where their whakapapa connections were unknown.

While it was willing to offer the breakdown of how many children identified as Māori per region, Oranga Tamariki withheld information related to iwi affiliation to 'protect the privacy of iwi ancestors'.

Once known as Child Youth and Family, the state welfare service has become Oranga Tamariki and one of its priorities is to build relationships with Māori.

* Motels used to shelter kids in state care only in 'extraordinary circumstances'

* Ngāpuhi based remand service launched to keep young offenders in the north**

In the related written response, Steve Groom - Oranga Tamariki's general manager, public, ministerial and executive services - said one of the values of the agency was its 'respect for the mana of people'.

'Our understanding is that each iwi descends from a common named ancestor or ancestors. Disclosing the information as requested would lead to the identification of those ancestors.'

Groom goes on to outline the privacy interests at stake in protecting the information.

'As the information sought relates to the state care of the descendants of the ancestors there is a risk that releasing the information would have a negative impact on their mana,' he said.

'We do not consider the public interest in the information outweighs the privacy interests concerned.'

Groom said Oranga Tamariki valued its relationship with Māori and as a priority was building stronger links with iwi and other organisations.

In June, the agency was heavily criticised after it advertised on Trade Me for a caregiver for a child, a listing which included the girl's iwi, her interests, and details about her background.

Te Rūnanga o Ngāti Ruanui kaiarataki Debbie Ngarewa-Packer was one who spoke out about the inappropriateness of the Trade Me ad.

However, it had since sparked a series of talks between the agency and her iwi.

'We have had extensive engagement with Oranga Tamariki.'

This involved co-designing solutions focussed on the needs of tamariki and their whānau, she said.

She said one of the the issues that did affect families was stigmatisation and anything that could be done to break that down to make it easier for people to ask for help would be welcomed.

Ngarewa-Packer was also aware of other work being undertaken between the agency and other iwi, including Tainui in the Waikato.

Earlier this month, Mahuru, a new youth remand service was launched in Kaikohe.

Run by Ngāpuhi Iwi Social Services in conjunction with Oranga Tamariki, the programme will help participants explore their connections to Ngāpuhi and also provide drug and alcohol workshops, health checks and a chance to learn outdoor living skills.