Human Rights Commission calls on agencies to reduce, if not eliminate altogether, seclusion and restraint in detention facilities

Wednesday, 9 December 2020

Children, young people and women – especially Māori – are being forced into seclusion for too long in detention agencies.

These are the findings of a follow-up report that has pushed the Human Rights Commission to call on detention agencies to reduce, if not eliminate completely, the use of seclusion and restraint.

Oxford University's Dr Sharon Shalev​ said it was 'disappointing' the problems highlighted in 2017 had not been addressed.

Seclusion in all agencies was used too often and for too long, with a reason not always clear, and data on the use of force and restraint raised concerns.

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Chief Human Rights Commissioner Professor Paul Hunt​ said the report was “gutting”. There had been some positive development but “there are racial and gender implications that we’ve got to confront as a country”.

The Human Rights Commission is calling on agencies to reduce, if not eliminate altogether, the use of seclusion and restraint.

“We know that the practices of seclusion and the use of restraints, particularly where they are used for prolonged periods, are inherently harmful,” Hunt said.

“Proactive, preventive alternatives, based on human rights and Te Tiriti and focused on de-escalation and trauma-informed practice, must be at the forefront.”

“Dr Shalev has identified that meaningful change will require a paradigm shift in seclusion and restraint practices in places of detention in New Zealand. We urge the Government to prioritise the work required to catalyse this.”

Prisons

In 2019, there were 15,225 recorded instances of segregation placements in New Zealand’s prisons with 1339 of those lasting longer than 15 days.

About 55 per cent lasted up to 30 days and some for more than six months.

Women were segregated at a higher rate than men. Māori women were disproportionately represented in longer segregations, making up 59 per cent of these stays, 78 per cent of all stays in management units and 65 per cent in units used for punishment.

'These discrepancies need to be explored as a matter of urgency, to determine whether decision-making processes may be influenced by unconscious bias or other factors relating to gender and ethnicity,” the report said.

People Against Prisons Aotearoa spokeswoman Emilie Rākete (Ngāpuhi and Te Rarawa)​ said Māori women were the fastest growing prison population and the report showed the overall failings of the approach to equity that the Government had taken.

“We need to stop believing in beautiful words. These haven't been matched with action yet. Solitary confinement is torture and banned under international law.”

Children and youth facilities

The report found that too many children and young people were spending too long in conditions which could “adversely affect their health and wellbeing, retrigger traumatic events, and damage relationships in the residences”.

It also found that the potential for harm may be worse for Māori children.

Between June and December 2019, 76 children and young people between 14 and 18 were placed in a secure unit 298 times, spending anywhere between a few hours to 20 days.

In total, they spent 815 days in Secure Care in the Youth Justice facility and more than half of those children identified as New Zealand Māori.

During the same time, 14 children between 12 and 16 were placed in a secure care unit of a care and protection residence 70 times. 62 per cent of those children identified as Māori.

Data from Oranga Tamariki found from the six months to December 2019, there were 366 uses of force in Youth Justice facilities and 184 incidents in Care and Protection residences.

“A distressed child should not be placed in conditions known to be stressful. This runs contrary not only to international human rights law, but also to common sense.”

Children’s Commissioner Judge Andrew Becroft​ said the report showed the urgent need for the phased closure of the four large care and protection residences, and the reduced use and eventual abolition of the four youth justice detention centres.

“For most New Zealanders these residences are invisible, and they operate below our radar. Most staff do their conscientious best but in the context of a flawed model.

“Some of the treatment and conditions these children and young people are subjected to are plainly unacceptable, as this report and our residential monitoring shows.”

Health and disability facilities

The average number of seclusion events has increased since 2017 but the average length had slightly decreased. However, it remained over two days.

One man of Pacific descent had spent 10 days in seclusion in one forensic unit and two Māori men spent seven and 14 days each in an acute inpatient psychiatric unit.

Māori were overrepresented in seclusion units.

Between September 2019 and February 2019, restraints were used 358 times. One hold lasted 1463 minutes and others were 290, 125 and 100 minutes.

“Seclusion must only be used as a very short-term emergency measure, not as a longer-term solution for more challenging service users, or lack of more appropriate beds or staff shortages,” the report said.

Many of the problems from 2017 such as stark environments, windows without curtains, rooms with no toilets and no access to running water were still relevant.

Ashley Peacock​, 42, lives on the Kāpiti Coast – he moved to a home there in 2018, several years after being in a mental health facility where he was kept in long-term seclusion.

His mother, Marlena​, said there was no question that he had been damaged.

“You don't recover from years of seclusion,' she said. “It's very degrading and when someone is in seclusion for years, it gets to the point where it gets difficult to get out of seclusion. They’re so used to being confined, they're afraid – it probably took a year to get him out of that room.”

His parents were in strong favour of the Human Rights Commission’s call to reduce the use of seclusion and restraint.

Police

Police did not provide information in “a timely manner and in a format which allowed for ready analysis” despite repeated requests, Shalev said.

She raised concerns about not being able to follow-up on police custody suites and the use of restraints, “and by the lack of accountability and transparency that suggests”.

In a statement, assistant commissioner response and operations Tusha Penny​ said police were working to improve how they cared for people in their custody.

Report recommendations

• Stop the use of ‘Secure Care' rooms for children and young people

• Reduce both the use and length of seclusion and restraint

• Explore potential racial and gender bias in decision-making regarding seclusion/segregation

• Improve material conditions and access to meaningful contact and activities in seclusion/segregation

• Provide therapeutic environments for distressed individuals and seek alternatives to seclusion and restraint for them

• Decommission facilities which are not fit for purpose

• Gather good quality and comprehensive data to monitor effective implementation of these recommendations

Audio provided by RNZ.