000			05809nam a22003857a 4500
999			_c7851 _d7851
005			20250625151623.0
008			221011s2022 -nz||| |||| 00| 0 eng d
040			_aAFVC
100			_aFitzmaurice, Luke _96609
245			_aTe Rito o Te Harakeke : _bdecolonising child protection and children's participation _cLuke S. Fitzmaurice
246			_aA thesis submitted for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy University of Otago
260			_c2022
300			_aelectronic document (325 pages) ; PDF file
500			_aPhD thesis, University of Otago
520			_aTamariki Māori are over-represented in the Aotearoa New Zealand child protection system. This is a long-standing problem, which has its roots in the impacts of colonisation on Māori. The issue has come to a head in recent years, with a report from the Waitangi Tribunal in 2021, ‘He Pāharakeke, He Rito Whakakīkīnga Whāruarua’, finding that the government had breached the principles of Te Tiriti o Waitangi/The Treaty of Waitangi in relation to child protection. This thesis explores those issues from a Māori perspective, focusing on four questions: 1. Should the child protection system in Aotearoa New Zealand be decolonised and, if so, which principles of tikanga could help with this? 2. How effectively do the legal, policy and practice settings of the current child protection system meet the needs of tamariki and whānau Māori? 3. How might kaupapa Māori research and theory help to ensure that the decolonisation of the child protection system happens safely? 4. How should decisions be made within a decolonised child protection system, and what role should tamariki and whānau themselves have in that process? Given the impacts of colonisation on the current challenges faced by tamariki and whānau Māori, the concept of decolonisation is used to analyse the ways in which the child protection system should change in future. In reference to my first research question, I argue that if the child protection system is to ever meet the needs of Māori it must be grounded in tikanga Māori and must contribute to the wider restoration of tikanga Māori in Aotearoa New Zealand generally. A decolonisation framework helps to highlight those wider changes that are necessary to improve outcomes for Māori generally, while also highlighting what must change within the child protection system itself. In reference to my second research question, I analyse the ways in which the legal, policy and practice settings of the current child protection system fail to meet the needs of Māori, and outline how those settings could be changed. In reference to my third research question, I draw on kaupapa Māori research and theory to develop a framework which I have labelled ‘kaupapa Māori legal theory’. This framework acknowledges the potential value of incorporating tikanga Māori in law, but seeks to problematise the assumption that doing so is inevitably positive. Doing so carries risk, and kaupapa Māori legal theory seeks to find a way forward between those benefits and risks by suggesting that incorporating tikanga in law can be positive for Māori, but only if it helps affect a shift in power to Māori from the Crown. I develop the concept of ‘legislative off-ramps’ to describe the potential legal shifts which can affect short-term benefits for Māori while also enabling longer-term transformative change. Finally, in reference to my fourth research question, I explore the issue of child protection decision-making as an illustration of how a decolonised child protection system might operate. Building on the theoretical analysis in the first half of my thesis, I analyse the findings from qualitative interviews I conducted with eight people, all of whom were Māori. The need to balance the views of tamariki and whānau with broader perspectives and considerations of tikanga is a microcosm of the issues facing the child protection system as a whole, and addressing the tension between those perspectives provides an illustration of how longer-term challenges within the child protection system could be addressed. Building on those interview findings, I outline six tikanga Māori principles which I believe can be central to a decolonised child protection system – mana, rangatiratanga, wānanga, whakapapa, whanaungatanga and whānau. I analyse the ways in which those principles could shift law, policy and practice, and provide examples of what legislative reform might look like. The proposed reforms are designed to improve the child protection system for tamariki and whānau Māori and ensure their voices are heard, while also giving effect to broader aspirations regarding Māori self-determination and decolonisation. I believe that finding a way to uphold both of those short-term and longer-term goals is what will ultimately make the biggest difference for Māori. The longer-term changes required are fundamental, and the child protection system can perhaps be a place to start. (Author's abstract). Record #7851
610			_aOranga Tamariki, Ministry for Children _97316
650			_aCHILD PROTECTION _9118
650			_aCHILD WELFARE _9124
650		0	_aVOICES OF CHILDREN AND YOUNG PEOPLE _99758
650			_aFAMILIES _9238
650			_aMĀORI _9357
650			_aRANGAHAU MĀORI _95532
650		4	_aSOCIAL SERVICES _9555
650			_aTAIPŪWHENUATANGA _95548
650			_aTAMARIKI _9597
650			_aTE AO MĀORI _912662
650			_aTHESES _9606
650		0	_aTIKANGA TUKU IHO _95542
650			_aTOKO I TE ORA _95247
650			_aTUHINGA WHAKAPAE _95598
650			_aWHĀNAU _9642
651		4	_aNEW ZEALAND _92588
856			_uhttp://hdl.handle.net/10523/13625
942			_2ddc _cTHESIS _hkmthesis23