TOAH-NNEST

Te Ohaakii a Hine- National Network for Ending Sexual Violence Together

Te Ohaakii a Hine National Network Ending Sexual Violence Together (TOAH-NNEST) celebrates the release of Te Toiora Mata Tauherenga - the Report of the Taskforce for Action on Sexual Violence (TASV).

It sets out recommendations to better prevent and respond to sexual violence in Aotearoa New Zealand.

TOAH-NNEST is grateful to the Honourable Minister of Justice Simon Power for his support that has enabled TOAH-NNEST to continue to develop as an organization and continue to work in partnership with government.

TOAH-NNEST has greatly appreciated the leadership and commitment demonstrated by Minister Power and looks forward to working to progress the wide ranging recommendations of this comprehensive report with him and other Ministers including the Honourable Minster of Maori Affairs Pita Sharples, the Honourable Minister of Women’s Affairs Pansy Wong, the Honourable Minister of Social Development Paula Bennett, the Honourable Minister of Health Tony Ryall, the Honourable Minister of ACC Nick Smith, the Honourable Minister of Police Judith Collins, the Honourable Minister of the Community and Voluntary Sector Tariana Turia, the Honourable Minister of Education Anne Tolley, and the Honourable Minister of Pacific Island Affairs Georgina Te Heuheu.

The report is the culmination of two years of intensive work undertaken within the partnership of TOAH-NNEST and government.

The TASV membership comprised the Secretary for Justice (Chair), the CEO of Ministry of Women’s Affairs (Deputy Chair), Commissioner of Police, Director-General of Health, and Chief Executives from Ministry of Education, Social Development, Accident Compensation Corporation, Te Puni Korkiri, Department of Corrections, Ministry of Pacific Island Affairs and four TOAH-NNEST representatives.

TOAH-NNEST has been impressed with the dedication, good-will and enormous commitment of all members of the TASV including the hard working Secretariat. Without such a strong commitment the taskforce members and members of all of the almost 20 working groups would not have been able to complete the huge amount of work required of them on top of their existing work.

TOAH-NNEST wishes publicly to thank all who contributed to this report particularly those from the sexual violence intervention support sector and the many survivors who gave their time and knowledge freely sometimes to researchers from several different working groups.

We would also like to acknowledge those who have come before us in this work. We know this is not ‘new’ work but work that we are continuing based on the enormous strides taken (mostly) by our women but also by some of our men before us.

As TOAH-NNEST was forming as a network in 2006 it called on the government for the TASV in response to public outpouring of concern for rape survivors going through the criminal justice system following the Louise Nicholas case.

TOAH-NNEST asked the TASV to look at six terms of reference (TOR) from:
1) prevention strategies and services incorporating attitudinal change and education,
2) early intervention and crisis response to acute and chronic sexual abuse and assault,
3) recovery and support services for those who had experienced sexual violence,
4) treatment and management of offenders that reduced re-offending and increased community safety,
5) effectiveness of the criminal justice system responses to sexual offending (including reporting, investigation, legislation, evidential procedures, prosecution and conviction) and,
6) the responsiveness of the justice system to survivors and improving outcomes.

Prior to the national network TOAH-NNEST there has never been such a comprehensive ‘one voice’ within the sexual violence response sector. TOAH-NNEST comprises of two houses representing Maori and Tauiwi communities. Sectors represented by TOAH-NNEST include those who work with survivors (female and male), offenders (male and female), medical personnel, those who work in prevention and survivor advocacy, as well as academics and legal experts.

Prior to the TASV no such government/community partnership with a specific focus on sexual violence has existed in this country at such a high level with such wide terms of reference.

Due to decades of under-resourcing to the community sector that works with sexual violence day in and day out, the work of the TASV 2007-2009 has needed to focus on foundational research work and scoping exercises such as stocktakes and literature reviews to create a snapshot of the amount of work required to achieve the overall goal of providing improving our overall response to the enormous problem of sexual violence that affects so many in this country.

Te Toiora Mata Tauherenga - the Report of the Taskforce for Action on Sexual Violence is only a beginning step in this journey - but it is a significant step.

TOAH-NNEST acknowledges to those they represent just how frustrating it has been particularly for the specialist sexual violence intervention sector to have to do such foundational work when the gaps in services at the flax-roots continue to be so great.

In addition, TOAH-NNEST is aware that presenting this report at the time of a global economic down-turn is of concern, especially for all who have worked so hard over the last two years. The hope was that when this report was presented to government there would be the chance of some immediate resourcing to improve services for those affected by sexual violence.

Despite the difficulty in timing, TOAH-NNEST is pleased to join with its government partners to present the huge amount of work achieved by the TASV in two short years.

The work of the taskforce has largely been a labour of hope fuelled by those who have dedicated themselves to improving services for those affected by sexual violence and to making all of our communities free from sexual violence.

Throughout these two years of the TASV most of the Pae have not only worked on several working groups and represented the specialist sexual violence intervention sector at Government level. They have, and are continuing to put in many hours to continue to build TOAH-NNEST as an organization, as well as keep their own very busy, but often poorly resourced, agencies operating.

TOAH-NNEST wishes to acknowledge its Pae Takawaenga (Governance) that has worked throughout the time of the TASV:

Nga Kaitiaki Mauri Caucus
Caroline Leef - Te Atawhai Tangata, Invercargill
Echo Shortland –Tu Wahine Trust, Auckland
Hera Pierce – Te Atawhai Tangata, Invercargill
Russell Smith – Rape Prevention Education, Auckland
Sandz Peipi Te Pou – Rape Crisis Collective, National – Whangarei Tai Tokerau
Sienna Katene-Hamilton – Kai Takawaenga, Nga Kaitiaki Mauri
Stella Gukibau – Tu Wahine Trust, Auckland
Te Owai Gemmell - Kite Rapu I Te Ora Trust, Opotiki

Tauiwi Caucus
Andrea Black – Rape Crisis Collective, National – Whangarei Tai Tokerau
Helen Sullivan – Wellington Sexual Abuse HELP
Hamish Dixon – Wellstop, Wellington
Kathryn McPhillips – Auckland Sexual Abuse HELP
Ken Clearwater – Male Survivors of Sexual Abuse Trust, Christchurch
Kim McGregor – Rape Prevention Education, Auckland
Louise Nicholas – Survivor Advocate, Rape Prevention Education
Mary Watts - Pacific Island Women’s Project
Marie Burke – Doctors for Sexual Abuse Care Christchurch
Paulette Benton-Greig – Auckland Sexual Abuse HELP

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