you have are and will always be bad

Good work by Rahui Katene, Maori Party MP for Te Tai Tonga in voicing good opposition to the secret Bill that fixes - that since 2008 it has been unlawful for police to retain identifying particulars of children and young people who have been through the youth justice system and subjected to a penalty less than conviction. This is not just about fixing that loophole. The secrecy apparently was so that no young person could take the Government to court. Labour did the deal with the gnats and The Maori Party, Chris Carter and The Greens opposed it today.

We know that Māori youth are arrested more and that part of this is due to racial profiling. Below-conviction-threshold options like family group conferences and restorative justice are there because they work and provide alternatives for rehabilitation. These young people have made mistakes but they have not breached the conviction threshold and therefore should not have their fingerprints and photos taken and stored in some database. 

Rahui is speaking strongly here

Our focus – in raising the questions we have – is to bring to the House the opportunity to talk about youth wellbeing rather than simply promoting yet another forum for politicians to talk about the perils of youth; and the need to hold the fingerprints of youth who have been admonished by a judge.

I would really recommend that Members look carefully at sections 283 (a) to (n) of the Children, Young Persons and their families Act. These provisions – for children to be admonished; for young parents to attend a parenting programme; for young people to attend a mentoring programme – are now provisions for which the fingerprints and photographs of these young people are kept.

And I would suggest in particular that Mr Hipkins looks at this detail – that these orders from a very good piece of legislation were always intended to focus on child and youth wellbeing – not fodder for this Policing Bill.

I have been greatly disappointed by the nature of the debate today which has tried to close down discussion on the impacts for youth and instead focus on the mistakes of the statute.

This Bill may appear to just be about a tidy up of some legislation but it really is about how we treat our youth, particularly Māori youth. You can see why many feel let down and alienated. This personal identifying information is kept even though they have not received a conviction – this is just wrong. I mean, what next? - just take the information at birth - you know, for the greater good. It doesn’t take much to connect the dots from this type of harassment to the high Māori youth suicide rate. The issues have to be faced up to instead of degrading the debate and focusing it on the technicalities. 

Our youth deserve more than platitudes and empty words. We have real issues because of how this society is constructed - this materialistic, individualistic approach based on capitalism is empty and dry - if you add in colonisation and patriarchy it can barely sustain life. It is our job to create the world for our children, not their job - blaming youth is pointless, stigmatising them is vindictive and counterproductive. We can make it better for our youth - it takes community and people, it takes culture and aroha. It takes listening.

Good on The Greens, Chris Carter, and The Maori Party (and I assume Mana as Hone’s proxy is still with the Greens I think) for opposing this and shame on Labour. The gnats have shown that money is their big driver yet again.

Littletunes Studio - music for the people by the people

I've got a mate who is a gifted musican. He has set up Littletunes which is a great concept. Take a group of young people for a couple of days, get them playing instruments, writing lyrics and singing. record and cut it together to make a song, video it and give the band and parents a copy. It really is amazing to see the results, music is such a universal language. An offshoot of Littletunes is the work Sam does with people of mixed ability . These videos show the fun and enjoyment of the process, in this case a weekend workshop. Many people are doing much in our society to make it better and increase the opportunities, especially in releasing creativity. Good on you mate.

Littletunes - music for the people by the people





Those songs will ring in your head, they are catchy and atmospheric and the sentiments of "got to be lazy" and "are you ready for a good time" say it all. Send me or Sam an email if you'd like to consider the talents of Littletunes to help your group, Sam works with children, youth, mixed ability people and teams within communities and organisations to release creativity, improve self esteem, and connect and strenghten teams.

keep your eyes open

News that Youthline has had a massive surge in calls is a real worry. Don't forget those latest (2007) suicide statistics which showed young maori men kill themselves more than 4 times more than the national average. Now is the time to be there for our rangatahi, now is the time to be available to them, to talk and listen to them. This time of year creates big pressures and many of us have not been taught very good coping skills. When it gets really tough there doesn't appear to be any way out, the answers are just not there. Keep your eyes open and spend some time with your tamariki and mokopuna.

From stuff

"A major increase in calls to a youth helpline points towards "disconnect and distress" in society, Youthline chief executive Stephen Bell says.

This Christmas has seen a rise of nearly 70 per cent in telephone calls to the help line compared to the same period last year.

A survey of calls received on Christmas Day showed prevailing concerns included self harm, eating disorders, relationships (particularly with family), friendships, loneliness and the loss of friends, through death or otherwise.

A survey by the organisation of 600 youths in October found that embarrassment was the leading cause that prevented young people from seeking help. "There is always a danger that, if people need help and don't seek it, they will continue to withdraw from those around them putting themselves more at risk," Mr Bell said.

It is positive that people are seeking help but invariably they will be the tip of the iceberg. A large number of young people will be struggling and embarrassed that they are struggling. Keep your eyes open. Thanks.

our country - highest youth suicide rate in OECD - shame

We really do need to front up to this issue. It is our shame.

"New Zealand is spending considerably less on child welfare than other OECD countries, a report from the organisation says.

The report, Doing Better for Children, was the first time the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development had reported on the wellbeing of children in its 30 member countries.

It identified New Zealand's biggest shortfall as its limited spending on children under the age of 5, which it said was less than half the average among OECD nations.

New Zealand was also struggling in dealing with child health.

It had the highest youth suicide rate in the OECD and an above-average child mortality rate.

Children lived in poor conditions, average family incomes were low by OECD standards and child poverty rates were high.

New Zealand children had high rates of educational achievement, but the gap between top and bottom performers was large."

Just have a wee think about that - our youth kill themselves more than ANY other OECD country. Whatever we are doing is not working. Are we going to keep blundering along without fronting up.

I am of the conclusion that creating community is actually the answer to most, if not all of our problems, including this one.

As Tariana Turia says, "The piece meal approach we have taken to date has failed", she said. "Without an approach like whanau ora we will continue to fail. Investing in our whanau is an investment in our future. If we don't do that then we not only doom them to a miserable future but we create a greater problem for us all in the future."

What hope are we offering our young people? What can we do differently?