by MSSAT Aotearoa | Nov 28, 2019 | News
Media Statement
By Rt Hon Jacinda Adern (Prime Minister), Hon Dr David Clark (Minister of Health)
27 November 2019
New Zealand’s first ever Suicide Prevention Office has officially opened today and is already working to tackle our persistently high rate of suicide.
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern and Minister of Health Dr David Clark visited the Ministry of Health today to mark the Office’s opening and launch a community suicide prevention fund for Māori and Pacific people.
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by MSSAT Aotearoa | Nov 5, 2019 | News
Samoa police have finalised criminal charges against a 51-year-old reverend of the Methodist Church, Tugia Tuliau, who is facing 10 counts.
Charges include one of rape and seven of sexual misconduct with a family member, as well as an indecent act to a dependent member of his family, who is a girl under 16 years of age.
The accused has appeared in the Supreme Court for the second time, with the case being adjourned without a plea being entered until next Monday to allow the defence lawyer to talk with his client.
The accused has been stripped of his pastoral roles.
The alleged offences happened when Mr Tuliau was serving at the Satalo Methodist Church.
Published in Radio New Zealand
4 November 2019
by MSSAT Aotearoa | Nov 5, 2019 | News, Public Inquiry
Two lawyers who have represented more than 1000 abuse survivors have told the Royal Commission no victim has ever received adequate compensation for what they suffered.
The inquiry into abuse in state and faith-based care has entered its second week of hearings in Auckland.
Published in Radio New Zealand
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by MSSAT Aotearoa | Nov 5, 2019 | News, Public Inquiry
Two lawyers who represent claimants who were abused while in state or faith-based care say the number of people who have come forward is growing.
The Royal Commission of Inquiry into Abuse in Care has entered into its second week of hearings being held in Auckland.
Published in Radio New Zealand
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by MSSAT Aotearoa | Nov 3, 2019 | News
Less than a third of sexual violence cases reported to the police make it court, according to a new report released by the Ministry of Justice.
Out of the almost 24,000 cases of sexual violence reports made to police between July 2014 and June last year, just 11 percent resulted in a conviction.
The government and advocacy groups say progress is being made, but a lot more work needs to be done.
Published in Radio New Zealand
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by MSSAT Aotearoa | Oct 30, 2019 | News, Public Inquiry
Analysis: A long time coming. Finally, after months of haggling over terms of reference, years of steadily growing political discussion and decades of pressure from those who experienced this vast subject first-hand, the Abuse in Care Royal Commission is ready to roll.
An avalanche of new material is in store for those whose job it will be to sift the evidence that will for the first time be publicly given at a preliminary contextual hearing in Auckland starting this Tuesday.
Published in Radio New Zealand
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by MSSAT Aotearoa | Oct 30, 2019 | News, Public Inquiry
Survivors of historical cases of child rape, violence and neglect at state-owned care institutions are being officially heard for the first time.
Witnesses on Tuesday began giving evidence at the Royal Commission of Inquiry into Abuse in Care, the biggest inquiry ever to have looked into what happened to children, young people and vulnerable adults in care between 1950 and 1999.
Keith Wiffin told the commission he was first abused aged 10 by a house master while he was at Epuni Boys Home. He’d been sent there after his father’s death left Wiffin’s mother unable to care for her four children.
Published in Stuff
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by MSSAT Aotearoa | Oct 29, 2019 | News, Public Inquiry
Warning: This story discusses issues related to rape and sexual violence.
As the Royal Commission of Inquiry into State Abuse begins public hearings, its survivor advisory group is in disarray. Laura Walters talks to these survivors about the ongoing issues, and why they still think others should come forward to share their stories.
On Tuesday, a group of abuse survivors will stand outside the Rydges Hotel in Auckland in a show of solidarity with others coming to share their experiences with the Royal Commission of Inquiry into Abuse in Care.
They are all members of the seminal Survivor Advisory Group – a group that has been plagued with ongoing issues.
Published in Newsroom
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by MSSAT Aotearoa | Oct 22, 2019 | News, Public Inquiry
Jehovah’s Witnesses church elders in New Zealand have been told to destroy documents, and child sex abuse survivors fear that will lead to the cover up of cases.
Published in Radio New Zealand
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by MSSAT Aotearoa | Oct 5, 2019 | News, Public Inquiry
A Catholic bishop who is part of the church’s response to the Royal Commission of inquiry into state abuse has offered his resignation to the Pope.
Published in Radio New Zealand
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by MSSAT Aotearoa | Sep 4, 2019 | News
Research funded jointly by social service providers and philanthropic organisations. Published from Women’s Health, Volume 15: 1–17, 2019.
Download the article (PDF)
by MSSAT Aotearoa | Aug 28, 2019 | News
Warning: This story deals with the topic of suicide.
The number of suicides in New Zealand has reached its highest-ever level, with 685 people dying in the year to June 30.
That compares to the 2018 road toll where 377 lives were lost.
Published in Stuff
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by MSSAT Aotearoa | Aug 21, 2019 | News
In response to concerns expressed within our survivor community, and to foster a more informed understanding of male circumcision as it presents in our contemporary society, MSA commissioned the attached literature review titled “Circumcision: A controversial topic.”
This paper also references another discussion on the ethical considerations of circumcision titled “Genital Autonomy and Sexual Wellbeing”, which has been included in our web Research archive to further inform our readers.
Download the PDF
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by MSSAT Aotearoa | Aug 19, 2019 | News
A study examining the importance of preserving the values and ethos of user-led peer support and self-help in the context of new policies to professionalise peer support.
There is a renewed acknowledgement of the role of peer support in mental health with new government policies calling for the appointment of peer support workers within mental health services. While this is a welcome move, there is also a danger that the values and ethos of peer support, based as it is in self-determination, reciprocity, empathy and shared experience, might be lost given its professionalisation, especially in the context of decreasing resources within the NHS. The report ‘The Freedom to be, the Chance to Dream: Preserving User-led Peer Support in Mental Health’, commissioned by the mental health charity Together and written by Alison Faulkner and Jayasree Kalathil, is based on a consultation with mental health service users and peer support services and their views on these new developments.
Read the full report.
Published in Survivor Research
2012
by MSSAT Aotearoa | Aug 8, 2019 | News, Public Inquiry
The head of the Royal Commission of Inquiry into Historical Abuse in Care, Sir Anand Satyanand, has announced he is stepping down from the job.
Sir Anand has chaired the high-level inquiry since its establishment in February.
This story was first published by RNZ
Published in Otago Daily Times
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by MSSAT Aotearoa | Jul 5, 2019 | News
In a world first, La Trobe University research has shown how peer-led support programs for family and friends who provide regular support to an adult diagnosed with a mental health condition can significantly improve carer well-being.
Published in MedicalXpress
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