27 September 2024

An open letter apologising for abuse in care

On behalf of Presbyterian Support Otago (PSO) we publicly apologise for the suffering and harm experienced by children who were in our care. As Chair and Chief Executive we pledge to lead PSO in responding to and learning from this tragic part of our history.

The Royal Commission of Inquiry into Abuse in Care confirmed the terrible experiences of some children in PSO’s care, at our residential children’s homes. Through meeting with people who have come forward, we have learned that some of those we trusted to care for children, inflicted harm on them. For these children, the experience of home was one of fear, hatred and loneliness that words can’t describe. Through PSO’s neglect we clearly failed some children at critical moments in their lives. We know that the impacts of these experiences can be lifelong and profound. This included making it harder for them to find and nurture loving adult relationships. We will have put some at risk of dependency on drugs and alcohol. We deplore every instance that caused harm to these children and we are deeply sorry that it happened.

Further, we are aware that we have made the process of healing more difficult still, by denying those in our care important information held about their young lives, when records were destroyed in 2017-18. We know how important such records are, not just to those who spent parts of their childhood in our care but to their families. These records belonged to those who were in our care, some of whom experienced harm. We fully accept that they should not have been destroyed and we lament that those important links to the past have been lost.

Our Board continues to review our policies and processes to ensure safety, specifically in light of the Commission’s report. We are committed to learning from the report and better understanding how we can continue to minimise the potential for abuse of vulnerable people in our care, living our values of integrity, respect, courage, manaaki and aroha.

PSO has offered support and care in the community to hundreds of thousands of families and people for well over a century. We are and will continue to be steadfast in our commitment to serving the community we have been a part of for so long.

As we continue to respond we are grateful for the ongoing prayers and encouragement from our community and especially from some of the very people for whom we failed in our duty of care.

We have been deeply moved by the courage of those who have come forward and we encourage people who experienced harm to contact us. We undertake to respond with care and compassion in the hope that through listening and understanding we can work with you towards redress and with your insights, strive to ensure that the actions and decisions of the past never happen again.

27 o Mahuru 2024

He reta wātea e whakapāha ana ki te huka i tūkinotia i tā rātau noho tāwharau ki a mātau

Nā Tautoko Perehipitiriana Ōtākou (PSO) ēnei kupu, ka tuku tūmatawhānui nei tā mātau whakapāha mō te mamae me te tūkino i rakona ai e kā tamariki i noho ki raro i tā mātau whakaruruhau. Ko ā māua, ko te Toihau, ko te Tumu Whakarae anō hoki kī tauraki, ka arahina e māua te PSO ki te urupare, ā, ki te ako anō hoki i tēnei wāhaka whakahiataki o ō mātau tāhuhu kōrero.

I whakatauhia e te Pakirehua o te Komihana o te Karauna ki te Tūkino o te Huka e Tautehia ana (Whanaketia) kā wheako kiriweti o ētahi o kā tamariki i te tautehia ai e te PSO ki ō mātau whare whakaruruhau. Nā te hui ki ētahi o kā tākata i puta whakamua mai, ko ākona e mātau i reira ētahi tākata, i whakapono ai mātau mā rātau kā tamariki e maimoa, i whakatūkinotia kētia aua tamariki. Ki ēnei tamariki, ko tō rātau wheako o te noho ki te kāika he mea whakamataku, he mea mau ā-hara, he mea mokemoke pū, ‘e kore te kupu ēnei āhuataka e taea te whakamārama’. Nā te whakahapa o te PSO i hē rāia atu, kīhai i poipoi i ētahi o ēnei tamariki i te wā whakahirahira rāia o ō rātau oraka. E mōhio ana mātau ko kā pāka o ēnei wheako ka mauroa, ā ka mau ki te pū o te ate. Tae noa atu ki tō rātau āhei ki tuku aroha, ki te noho piritahi ki tētahi hoa aroha i a rātau e pakeke ana. Mā reira ko tukuna kē e mātau ētahi kia whakawarea ai rātau e kā whakapōauau, e te waipiro anō hoki. Kātahi nā te kaha o te pōuri ka puta ki a mātau i ia wā ka rakona e mātau te tūkino i utaina atu ki ēnei tamariki, ā, e tino matapōuri ana i te pahawa atu o taua mahi.

Waihoki, e mōhio ana mātau, nā mātau tou te ara whakamahu i whakauaua i tā mātau whakahē i te huka i maimoatia ai e mātau hiahia ki ētahi kōrero whakahirahira i te pupurihia e mātau, ki ētahi kōrero mō ō rātau oraka i tā mātau turaki i ō rātau pūkete i kā tau 2017-2018. E mōhio ana mātau te hira mārie o aua pūkete, ehara i te mea ki te te huka i whai wāhi ki ō mātau whare whakaruruhau, ekari, ki ō rātau whānau anō hoki. E mōhio mārie ana mātau te nui tou o te hē i te turakitaka o aua pūkete, ā, e taki mōteatea hoki ana mātau i te poroka o aua here ki tō whakapapa, ki tōu ake tāhuhu kōrero.

E huritao tou ana te Poari i ā mātau kaupapa here, me ā mātau tukaka kia mātua whakarite te haumaru o taua huka, inarā kā kiteka o Whanaketia, te pūroko o te Komihana. Ka ū titikaha mātau ki te ako i kā akoraka nui ko whakahautia e te pūroko me te whai i te mārama pū ki te ara kia kaua tou e tūkinotia ai te iwi whakaraerae e noho ana ki ō mātau whare whakaruruhau, e whakatinana ana hoki ō mātau uara o te kākau tapatahi, te kauanuanu, te māia, te manaakitaka me te aroha.

Hori atu i te kotahi rau tau ko tautokona, ko maimoatia te hia rau, te hia mano whānau o te hapori e te PSO. Ka ū kaha tou mātau ki tō mātau haepapa kia noho hai rika hāpai ki te hapori i noho roa ai mātau.

I a mātau e huritao tou ana, e whakamānawa tou ana mātau ki kā īnoi me kā kōrero whakatenatena nō te hapori, inarā, nō ētahi o aua tākata tou i mūhoretia ai e mātau te atawhai.

I te kaha roko mātau i te māia o te huka i whakaputa ai ēnei kōrero, ā, ka akiakina hoki aua tākata i tūkinotia ai e mātau te whakapā mai. Ko whakatau mātau ki te whakahoki kōrero me te atawhai, me te aroha kia manakotia ai, mā te whakaroko, mā te mārama ka taea te mahi kātahi ki a koe ki te puretumutaka, ā, mā tō māramataka ka kana ki te whakarite tūāhua e kore rāia anō e pāhawa ana aua momo mahi, aua momo whakatauka.