In 2007, the Taskforce for Action on Sexual Violence was established to find better ways of preventing and responding to the high rates of sexual violence and to find appropriate areas where the government could focus funding. The Taskforce drew influence from Te Ohaakii a Hine – National Network Ending Sexual Violence Together (TOAH-NNEST), formed in 2007, which encompasses a variety of community groups and non-governmental organisations working in the area, who are separated into a tangata whenua caucus and a tau iwi caucus. The Taskforce itself was composed of representatives from:
-The Ministry of Justice
-The Ministry of Women's Affairs
-The New Zealand Police
-The Department of Corrections
-The Ministry of Education
-The Ministry of Pacific Island Affairs
-Te Puni Kōkiri
-ACC
-The Ministry of Health
-The Ministry of Social Development
-Four representatives from TOAH-NNEST
In the report which was released in 2009, a number of recommendations were made relating to: prevention, ongoing care for victims, treatment for perpetrators, the criminal justice system and future focus. Of note, the last set of recommendations included monitoring levels of progress on the recommendations annually, as well as maintaining the taskforce for at least another four years. It was disbanded after just two years and Kim McGregor from Rape Crisis recently called for it to be reinstated. A quick google search also reveals no substantive effort to monitor the progress of the recommendations. A full list of the recommendations can be found here, but suffice to say there has been very little action to speak of in the last three years.
Just after the elections last year, Auckland Sexual Abuse Help very nearly had to shut down its services due to a lack of funding and ongoing unmeetable costs. A petition which gained thousands of signatures culminated in the National government giving it another six months of funding. Then today, a press release from Wellington Rape Crisis informed me that, due to ongoing increasing costs and limited funding, they will be closing their doors for one extra day a week. So how do we reconcile the ongoing problems in seeking help for victims/survivors of sexual violence with some of the recommendations given by the Taskforce three years ago including increased funding, immediate funding to crisis groups to meet costs and reviewing the ACC changes? It does seem like the action part of this very hard-working taskforce has been utterly forgotten. It's a sad indictment on the government that such services are missing out.
For anyone wishing to act to prevent the cutting down of this much needed service, please donate at this link.
Monday, August 13, 2012
Tuesday, December 27, 2011
New Zealand political awards for 2011
So at the end of an election year, or any year really, it's good to reflect on the good, the bad and the ugly in political terms. This will be my attempt to draw together events and faces of this year in a semi-optimistic and semi-cynical way.
| Sourced here |
To start with we have the Maya Angelou Award for courage in the face of misogyny:
Metiria Turei - Wasn't afraid to stand up and tell the speaker a few days ago that she thought Winston Peter's comments about hiding behind skirts were offensive (11:40 onwards in the video). Has also been an advocate more generally in the atmosphere of a very anti-women drive in welfare policy in the National Party.
Sue Kedgley - Used her valedictory speech to determinedly expose Parliament for its childishness and resemblance to an old boys' club. Kedgley will be missed as a valuable MP from a feminist background who wasn't afraid to say what needed to be said.
The George W. Bush gobsmack award
Winston Peters - Obviously. It wasn't even his comeback that was surprising, but the fact he managed to bring in eight MPs, including the former Mayor of the North Shore and the former TV One weatherman. Politics is never boring when Winston is involved, although it remains to be seen how he will do, apart from his usual fear-mongering ways.
The Nike award for successful populist branding
John Key - This guy has the pitiful New Zealand media wrapped around his little finger. From cameos in the Women's Weekly about life with Bronagh, Key has managed to make the personal political. In this sense, I see some similarities to the Obama brand. We are fed the most ridiculous non-news in the name of keeping up with the Keys. We saw his weird facade drop a bit, during the stress of the cuppa tea saga, but the New Zealand public still saw fit to vote in our very own awkward hand-shaker with a near majority. Frightening.
The Paul Henry award for misogyny
Alisdair Thompson - Taken out in astounding fashion, Thompson's comments about "women's monthly sick problems" became world famous. His dogged defence of them got more cringeworthy by the day.
John Banks - This man's views on a variety of issues frighten me and are summed up well here.
The 'let's be a bit more like America' award for beneficiary bashing
Paula Bennett - Whether it be releasing the private details of beneficiaries who disagreed with her, or supporting what are likely to be the most damaging welfare reforms to date, Bennett who herself was once on the benefit appears determined to savage others who need it.
The sadly missed award
Carmel Sepuloni - It looked as if Sepuloni had won back her seat after special votes were counted, but Sepuloni's opponent, Paula Bennett made a comeback in the recount. Although there are still options available to Sepuloni, her comeback seems unlikely. Sepuloni was a valuable member of Parliament, who continually advocated for survivors of domestic violence and sexual violence. Her voice will be greatly missed.
Carol Beaumont - I am unsure why Beaumont was left so far down Labour's list and questions abound about why this list turned out the way it did. Beaumont championed the cause of pay equity in Parliament and will be a much missed voice in the new look Labour caucus.
Annette Sykes - After special votes, a further 500 votes would have seen Annette Sykes be the second MP for the Mana Party. Sykes is a practising lawyer and activist working to promote Maori interests and tino rangatiratanga. Her voice would have been a much valued one alongside Harawira's in Parliament and it's sad that this did not come to fruition.
The Don Brash award for racism
John Banks - Banks again cleans up with this appearance on the Nation. For those without video capability the quote is this: "If we continue the bankrupt response of just paying young Polynesian, young Maori men in South Auckland the dole to sit around in front of TV, smoke marijuana, watch pornography and plan more drug offending and more burglaries...". Nuff said?
John Ansell - The ACT marketing advisor eventually resigned after his famous "Fed up of pandering to Maori radicals?" advertisement ran in the New Zealand Herald. Ansell was also famous for his iwi/kiwi billboards for the Coastal Coalition. The best and only response to such antics was Moata's brilliant post about the 'Maorification' of New Zealand
The Garth McVicar dehumanisation award
Judith Collins gains this award far and away with her comments implying that Christchurch looters would hopefully be raped in prison. Disturbing.
The tryhard award
For the election, I went to the Wellington Young Feminists' Collective Ladies in the House event. Ben Craven, the Wellington Central candidate for New Zealand First promised many things which I'm certain aren't NZ First policy including but not limited to: putting gender identity into the human rights act and promoting pro-choice policy. He also stated that all domestic violence offenders would have their benefits cut off, woops. To be fair, he didn't get a lot of time to prepare.
Politician of the year award
Hone Harawira - Hone split with the Maori Party, created the Mana Party, survived a by-election and formed a huge force on the left in New Zealand politics including Annette Sykes, Sue Bradford and John Minto. His speech in Parliament the other day only cemented his status as a radical force in leftist politics in New Zealand.
Metiria Turei - The Green Party co-leader was named politician of the year by Hone Harawira and led the Green Party to an impressive 14 MPs in the House. Her tireless campaigning for social justice in New Zealand is the main reason for this award.
The Barack Obama great expectations award
Jan Logie – Jan came in at number 9 on the Green Party list. She has worked with Rape Crisis, HELP, Women's Refuge and a number of other organisations. She also impressed me talking about gender violence at Ladies in the House. I expect great things from this woman whose portfolios in the Green caucus are: income support, immigration, women, Pacific Island affairs, ethnic affairs, human rights, rainbow and overseas development aid. I look forward to her contributions in Parliament.
Mojo Mathers - After special votes were counted, Mojo Mathers swooped into Parliament at number 14 on the list making her New Zealand's first profoundly deaf MP. She will be a great advocate in Parliament for disability issues and also fills the massive shoes of Sue Kedgley tackling the portfolios of food and animal rights. Hopefully by the new year, Parliament will be sufficiently equipped for her to actually follow the debates.
Holly Walker - Holly impressed me at both the Ladies in the House event and at the Green Party Campaign Launch where she spoke on behalf of the new potential MPs. A feminist-identifying Rhodes Scholar, she promises to be an excellent advocate of working social policies in Parliament.
Jacinda Ardern - One of only two women on Labour's front bench, Ardern is a rising force in the Labour Party and could well be their next leader.
David Shearer - Does he have what it takes?
The creepy speech award
John Banks is just plain weird - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cFEPqnZVOdk
The cat award for unsuccessful attempts to be a cat
The Martin Luther King Jr. speech excellence award
Russell Norman for his atheist Christmas values speech, a text edition can be found here.
The Ruth Richardson award for cutting funding to much needed social services
The National Party - Within days of National winning the election, Auckland Sexual Abuse Help was fighting for survival, they were given six more months. The entire last term of National has consisted of continued cutting of ACC sensitive claims, funding to Rape Crisis and other organisations, and a common disregard for the work that these organisations do.
The 'stand up fight back' award for protest and resistance
October 15 solidarity - Charges were dropped against 13 of the accused with another 4 still facing charges. The work of October 15th Solidarity continues unabated to exonerate the four remaining accused.
Slutwalk 2011 - The movement to stop blaming victims for sexual violence was a huge success here and overseas. Future events could look at being more inclusive.
Queer Avengers - A Queer the Night march spurned on the creation of this group who fight against homophobia and transphobia in Wellington and further afield.
The Occupy movement - Around the world and here in New Zealand, the Occupy movement has been a significant part of global protest. Although Occupy Wellington has mainly drawn to a close now, ground has been drawn up for further political discussion.
The expletive award for stupid decisions
John Key and John Banks - Charter schools, something that was almost never mentioned in Epsom campaigning or by the National government is suddenly a coalition maker? Charter schools have failed elsewhere and will struggle here.
'So long and thanks for all the fish' award for leaving politicians
Sue Kedgley - known as a steadfast feminist campaigner for women's rights and animal rights, the influence of Sue in Parliament will be sorely missed.
And that's a wrap!
Sunday, November 27, 2011
Thoughts on the election
I spent last night at the Green Party party at San Fran Bathhouse. A good result for the Greens, not anyone else on the left really.
Shocks, not-so-shocks and other random tidbits
-NZ First before special votes is at 6.8% which will bring them in 8 MPs. The tea party contributed to this. How does this man just keep coming back?
-Peter Dunne retains Ohariu ahead of Charles Chauvel. No surprises there.
-Epsom voters follow John Key's lead and vote in John Banks who will be the only ACT MP in Parliament. Disappointing, but pretty much just another MP for National.
-Don Brash resigns. Nuff said.
-Rahui Katene loses Te Tai Tonga to Rino Tirikatene. Disappointing for the Maori Party, but not surprising.
-Hone Harawira wins his seat back, but without the percentage of the party vote required to also bring in Annette Sykes - disappointing given Mana had the potential to be a strong force on the left. Hopefully they will rebuild and do better in three years.
-Nats don't get majority - on 48% before special votes. Thank fuck for that.
-Labour lose: Carmel Sepuloni, Carol Beaumont, Stuart Nash and many more.
So the Greens will retain Norman, Turei, Hague, Delahunty, Graham, Hughes and Clendon and will bring in:
6. Eugenie Sage - lives in Christchurch, has a background in water management and environmental stuff.
9. Jan Logie - impressed me at Ladies in the House with her talk on gender violence. Will bring in a much needed expertise on social justice issues. Has been on the board for Rape Crisis, Women's Refuge and has been involved in unions as well.
10. Steffan Browning - Didn't hear much from him during the campaign. From his profile, his interests and expertise seem to be in environmental law. He was involved with the Waihopai Spy Base protests.
11. Denise Roche - Ran for Auckland Central against Nikki Kaye. Is my friend's Aunty. Has a background in local government. Interests and expertise include waste management, Maori issues and the environment.
12. Holly Walker - impressed me also at Ladies in the House. She also spoke on behalf of those not already in Parliament at the Green Party campaign launch. Did an MPhil at Oxford (!). Will also bring in interest in fighting for social justice particularly indigenous development.
13. Julie Anne Genter - didn't hear a lot from her during the campaign. Main interests seem to be urban planning and redevelopment.
14. Mojo Mathers (hopefully - special votes should swing her in) - Assuming special votes get her in, she will be NZ's first profoundly deaf MP. Interested in a broad range of policy issues - particularly disability and human rights, as well as animal welfare, women's rights and biodiversity.
Shocks, not-so-shocks and other random tidbits
-NZ First before special votes is at 6.8% which will bring them in 8 MPs. The tea party contributed to this. How does this man just keep coming back?
-Peter Dunne retains Ohariu ahead of Charles Chauvel. No surprises there.
-Epsom voters follow John Key's lead and vote in John Banks who will be the only ACT MP in Parliament. Disappointing, but pretty much just another MP for National.
-Don Brash resigns. Nuff said.
-Rahui Katene loses Te Tai Tonga to Rino Tirikatene. Disappointing for the Maori Party, but not surprising.
-Hone Harawira wins his seat back, but without the percentage of the party vote required to also bring in Annette Sykes - disappointing given Mana had the potential to be a strong force on the left. Hopefully they will rebuild and do better in three years.
-Nats don't get majority - on 48% before special votes. Thank fuck for that.
-Labour lose: Carmel Sepuloni, Carol Beaumont, Stuart Nash and many more.
So the Greens will retain Norman, Turei, Hague, Delahunty, Graham, Hughes and Clendon and will bring in:
6. Eugenie Sage - lives in Christchurch, has a background in water management and environmental stuff.
9. Jan Logie - impressed me at Ladies in the House with her talk on gender violence. Will bring in a much needed expertise on social justice issues. Has been on the board for Rape Crisis, Women's Refuge and has been involved in unions as well.
10. Steffan Browning - Didn't hear much from him during the campaign. From his profile, his interests and expertise seem to be in environmental law. He was involved with the Waihopai Spy Base protests.
11. Denise Roche - Ran for Auckland Central against Nikki Kaye. Is my friend's Aunty. Has a background in local government. Interests and expertise include waste management, Maori issues and the environment.
12. Holly Walker - impressed me also at Ladies in the House. She also spoke on behalf of those not already in Parliament at the Green Party campaign launch. Did an MPhil at Oxford (!). Will also bring in interest in fighting for social justice particularly indigenous development.
13. Julie Anne Genter - didn't hear a lot from her during the campaign. Main interests seem to be urban planning and redevelopment.
14. Mojo Mathers (hopefully - special votes should swing her in) - Assuming special votes get her in, she will be NZ's first profoundly deaf MP. Interested in a broad range of policy issues - particularly disability and human rights, as well as animal welfare, women's rights and biodiversity.
Monday, October 24, 2011
Sports
Something that a lot of people don't know about me is that I'm actually pretty into sport. As a teenager, I played football, netball, hockey and even croquet at one stage. It's also fairly easy to get me into sport. I get pretty competitive if you just sit me in front of the TV and I know the rules well enough.
Most recently, my friend who is an amazing triathlete has gotten me into triathlon. This has led to me watching the recent ITU world series (both men's and women's), as well as the Ironman World Champs in Kona, Hawaii. For anyone who does not know what Ironman is, it is an extremely long distance triathlon. To be exact about it, a 3.86km (2.4mi) swim, a 180.25km (112mi) bike and a marathon i.e. a 42.195km (26.219mi) run. There were three New Zealand elite triathletes competing at the world champs in Kona: Sam Warriner and Joanna Lawn in the women's race and Cameron Brown in the men's race. Much to my dismay, it was impossible to watch the race on any channel broadcast here. Luckily, Ironmanlive had a running stream of it on their website, although this typically focused on one or two athletes for the entire race, probably due to a lack of funding to cover the event more fully. Most of the information I was able to glean about the race came from a tag on Twitter. There was marginal coverage of New Zealand athletes in the event in the news, both leading up to and during the event. In New Zealand time, the event ran from 5am to around 2 or 3pm depending on which race you were watching (there were also a number of New Zealanders competing in the age group races). During that time, there was very little on any of the three Sky Sport channels. A rugby talkshow was on one, golf on another and a non-NZ event on the third. This continued on for the vast majority of the time the Ironman World Champs were on. We had three athletes in there, which begs the question, why could they not have coverage of this event on a New Zealand channel?
This has become a pattern for a number of sports in New Zealand. Despite our poor record (which has finally changed tonight, go All Blacks!!) in bringing home the Rugby World Cup, we have recently been World Champions, Olympic Champions or Commonwealth Champions in women's shot put (Valerie Vili is an Olympic and World Champion), variously in rowing (Mahe Drysdale; Caroline and Georgina Evers-Swindell; Nathan Cohen & Joseph Sullivan; Eric Murray & Hamish Bond; Juliette Haigh & Rebecca Scown; and several more), women's rugby (World Champs), men and women's triathlon (through Sam Warriner in the 2005 world champs and Hamish Carter and Bevan Docherty with gold and silver in the 2008 Beijing olympics, more recently Andrea Hewitt gained a silver in the ITU world series and a gold in the World Cup race), cycling (Hayden Roulston, Sarah Ulmer and many more), motorsport, swimming, middle distance running (through Nick Willis and Nikki Hamblin), athletics, netball (Commonwealth champs and second in the world), sailing, softball, squash (through Joelle King and Jaclyn Hawkes at the recent World Champs), kayaking (Ben Fouhy, Lisa Carrington, Teneale Hatton), equestrian (Mark Todd, Andrew Nicholson), men's and women's cricket, rugby league, canoeing, orienteering, tae kwon do, men's and women's hockey and golf. Impressive results have also been gained in both men's and women's football, men's and women's basketball and men's and women's tennis in recent years. New Zealand has also consistently had a number of athletes win world championships and olympic medals in paralympic events (Adam Hall, Jess Hamill and many many more).
Some of these sports are covered rather well by one channel or another in New Zealand. However, there are still huge gaps for many sports. For example, the ITU men's race in Beijing this year was shown on Sky Sport 3, but the women's race which was won by Andrea Hewitt did not receive any coverage. To watch it, I had to pay to view a livestream on a website. Another kiwi, Kate McIlroy, also featured prominently in this race and one a week later, so it was really a bit of a shame that the race couldn't be squeezed into the sports coverage somewhere.
We are a rugby-loving country and that much is clear, after tonight particularly. But the narrow focus on rugby has led to a few too many other sports being sidelined (nice pun dontcha think). A lot of kiwis don't even know that we have New Zealanders competing at the top level of many sports. There are a lot of people who don't even know that there are people who competitively and voluntarily run a marathon after swimming AND cycling. This is not just a New Zealand problem either. I know Australia have many of the same problems, and netball is just making it through to the sports channels there, despite the fact that they are world champions. Likewise, many Britons have no clue that one of their own has won Kona four times in rather impressive fashion. A sport other than rugby made it through to primetime in New Zealand when the All Whites competed in the Fifa World Cup. Surprisingly, very few people seemed to be aware that the Women's football team of New Zealand had made it to Fifa in 2007 (and went again in 2011). The women's team were also gold medal winners at last year's Oceania Cup. It is frustration with this sort of thing that leads to frustration with the constant coverage of rugby, even when games have not been played or there is very little to report. The "breaking news" last week that at that very minute, Dan Carter was receiving surgery on his groin was not something I needed to know.
So what's the solution to this? I'm not sure. But we do need more awareness of the myriad of sports that kiwis are involved in. It's going to be impossible to always cover everything, of course, but there definitely could be a lot more done to raise awareness of different codes. One of the things I like so much about the Olympics is the non-typical sports that come out of the woodwork that kiwis excel in.
With that, the end of this entry is devoted to the Silver Ferns who won by one goal against Australia this afternoon, and the All Blacks who won by one point to France and gained the Rugby World Cup, which we haven't won since 1987. A good day!
 |
| Chrissie Wellington (GBR) wins Kona Ironman for the fourth time |
Most recently, my friend who is an amazing triathlete has gotten me into triathlon. This has led to me watching the recent ITU world series (both men's and women's), as well as the Ironman World Champs in Kona, Hawaii. For anyone who does not know what Ironman is, it is an extremely long distance triathlon. To be exact about it, a 3.86km (2.4mi) swim, a 180.25km (112mi) bike and a marathon i.e. a 42.195km (26.219mi) run. There were three New Zealand elite triathletes competing at the world champs in Kona: Sam Warriner and Joanna Lawn in the women's race and Cameron Brown in the men's race. Much to my dismay, it was impossible to watch the race on any channel broadcast here. Luckily, Ironmanlive had a running stream of it on their website, although this typically focused on one or two athletes for the entire race, probably due to a lack of funding to cover the event more fully. Most of the information I was able to glean about the race came from a tag on Twitter. There was marginal coverage of New Zealand athletes in the event in the news, both leading up to and during the event. In New Zealand time, the event ran from 5am to around 2 or 3pm depending on which race you were watching (there were also a number of New Zealanders competing in the age group races). During that time, there was very little on any of the three Sky Sport channels. A rugby talkshow was on one, golf on another and a non-NZ event on the third. This continued on for the vast majority of the time the Ironman World Champs were on. We had three athletes in there, which begs the question, why could they not have coverage of this event on a New Zealand channel?
This has become a pattern for a number of sports in New Zealand. Despite our poor record (which has finally changed tonight, go All Blacks!!) in bringing home the Rugby World Cup, we have recently been World Champions, Olympic Champions or Commonwealth Champions in women's shot put (Valerie Vili is an Olympic and World Champion), variously in rowing (Mahe Drysdale; Caroline and Georgina Evers-Swindell; Nathan Cohen & Joseph Sullivan; Eric Murray & Hamish Bond; Juliette Haigh & Rebecca Scown; and several more), women's rugby (World Champs), men and women's triathlon (through Sam Warriner in the 2005 world champs and Hamish Carter and Bevan Docherty with gold and silver in the 2008 Beijing olympics, more recently Andrea Hewitt gained a silver in the ITU world series and a gold in the World Cup race), cycling (Hayden Roulston, Sarah Ulmer and many more), motorsport, swimming, middle distance running (through Nick Willis and Nikki Hamblin), athletics, netball (Commonwealth champs and second in the world), sailing, softball, squash (through Joelle King and Jaclyn Hawkes at the recent World Champs), kayaking (Ben Fouhy, Lisa Carrington, Teneale Hatton), equestrian (Mark Todd, Andrew Nicholson), men's and women's cricket, rugby league, canoeing, orienteering, tae kwon do, men's and women's hockey and golf. Impressive results have also been gained in both men's and women's football, men's and women's basketball and men's and women's tennis in recent years. New Zealand has also consistently had a number of athletes win world championships and olympic medals in paralympic events (Adam Hall, Jess Hamill and many many more).
Some of these sports are covered rather well by one channel or another in New Zealand. However, there are still huge gaps for many sports. For example, the ITU men's race in Beijing this year was shown on Sky Sport 3, but the women's race which was won by Andrea Hewitt did not receive any coverage. To watch it, I had to pay to view a livestream on a website. Another kiwi, Kate McIlroy, also featured prominently in this race and one a week later, so it was really a bit of a shame that the race couldn't be squeezed into the sports coverage somewhere.
 |
| Andrea Hewitt wins gold in Beijing (source) |
So what's the solution to this? I'm not sure. But we do need more awareness of the myriad of sports that kiwis are involved in. It's going to be impossible to always cover everything, of course, but there definitely could be a lot more done to raise awareness of different codes. One of the things I like so much about the Olympics is the non-typical sports that come out of the woodwork that kiwis excel in.
With that, the end of this entry is devoted to the Silver Ferns who won by one goal against Australia this afternoon, and the All Blacks who won by one point to France and gained the Rugby World Cup, which we haven't won since 1987. A good day!
Saturday, August 27, 2011
Suicide in New Zealand
I write this post about an issue very close to my heart that has affected me personally on a huge level in the past month and one that has also cropped up in the media in the past couple of weeks.
There is a blanket ban on the reporting of suicide in the media in New Zealand. Under the Coroner's Act 2006, in a case of self-inflicted death, the coroner is only allowed to report name, age, occupation and finding of self-inflicted death unless the release of other information would not cause harm. This is due to the well-recorded phenomenon of copycat suicides and many other countries have restrictions in place - Norway who (due to short daylight hours it is thought) have a relatively high rate of suicide and there is a complete blanket ban on reporting of suicides or attempted suicides. The World Health Organisation have taken a slightly less hardline approach, and recommend that suicide be reported in a accurate and helpful manner. This of course relies on the sensitivity of the media.
This issue cropped up in the media last year and meetings were held to discuss a change in the interpretation of the Coroner's Act. Jim Anderton, whose daughter took her own life in the early 90s spoke out against a loosening of the rules, citing his own experience with being hounded by the media in the months leading up to his daughter's death when she was receiving treatment. This is definitely a point worthy of consideration. How can we expect the New Zealand media to be respectful in its reporting? This means placing trust in what is effectively an industry which makes money off dramatic headlines. I'm sure I'm not the only one who has seen stuff.co.nz go the way of the Daily Mail recently. Furthermore, as we've seen in England, the News of the World saw fit to hack into a murdered girl's phone just to get the best story.
An example where the media have more or less been given free rein is Ireland. Although there are guidelines in place, these are fairly regularly breached. A good friend of mine lived in Ireland for a couple of years and said she was fairly shocked by the headlines reporting on suicide or attempted suicide. They were all attention-grabby and as dramatic as possible. There is an organisation attempting to prevent this sort of reporting going on, but it is unclear how successful they have been.
Australia has taken a novel approach in being one of the only countries to address these issues in courses for aspiring journalists. Mediawise in the UK also offers a perspective which emphasises the need for ethics in the media and teaches about issues such as these. This seems to target the real problem which is blatant distrust in the media to report mental health and suicide issues respectfully.
The other day, figures released by the Mental Health Commission showed that New Zealand have the highest suicide rate in the OECD for young women. Young men in New Zealand also have the third highest rate of suicide in the OECD. Experts have called on the government to prioritise mental health services in order to address these figures. From a personal perspective, I think this would go some way towards addressing the issues. Mental health services in New Zealand are notoriously difficult to access even if you live in one of the country's main centres. This is not the fault of the professionals who run the services; the limited funding they receive can only be stretched so far and is understandably allocated to the most desperate cases. This makes early intervention very difficult and can often end in an ambulance at the bottom of the cliff-type scenario.
Focused mental health policies are needed and from this government we have seen quite the opposite. Funding cuts to ACC sensitive claims have made accessing help a lot harder for survivors of sexual violence. Moreover, there have been cuts to several mental health programmes as well as research into mental health outcomes. It is likely in the climate that National would have us believe we are in, more cuts will be forthcoming. A growing imprisonment rate will no doubt add to these issues as more people are exposed to unhealthy environments. Furthermore, as books like The Spirit Level show us that the growing inequality we are seeing in New Zealand is correlated with worsening mental health. Not only does this suggest that more needs to be done to support those at the bottom of the heap, but also offers explanations as to why New Zealand seems to feature so highly in suicide rates compared with other countries.
Suicide is one of the hardest to understand actions in my view. It is something that needs to be the focus of policy and very soon.
If you are feeling suicidal, PLEASE reach out to someone, and remember you are not alone. The following agencies can also be contacted:
New Zealand
Lifeline: 0800 543 354
Help for depression: 0800 111 757 depression.org.nz
The Lowdown: text 5626 or email team@thelowdown.co.nz
Youthline: 0800 37 66 33 Free text to 234 or email/MSN talk@youthline.co.nz
Australia
Lifeline Australia: 13 11 14
United States
1-800-273-TALK (8255)
1-800-784-2433
Canada
(403) 266-4357
UK & Ireland
UK: 08457 90 90 90
Republic of Ireland: 1850 60 90 90
Crisis centres for around the world can be found on this website: http://www.iasp.info/resources/Crisis_Centres/
What do you think about the reporting of suicide in the media?
What do you think is the best way we can address suicide?
There is a blanket ban on the reporting of suicide in the media in New Zealand. Under the Coroner's Act 2006, in a case of self-inflicted death, the coroner is only allowed to report name, age, occupation and finding of self-inflicted death unless the release of other information would not cause harm. This is due to the well-recorded phenomenon of copycat suicides and many other countries have restrictions in place - Norway who (due to short daylight hours it is thought) have a relatively high rate of suicide and there is a complete blanket ban on reporting of suicides or attempted suicides. The World Health Organisation have taken a slightly less hardline approach, and recommend that suicide be reported in a accurate and helpful manner. This of course relies on the sensitivity of the media.
This issue cropped up in the media last year and meetings were held to discuss a change in the interpretation of the Coroner's Act. Jim Anderton, whose daughter took her own life in the early 90s spoke out against a loosening of the rules, citing his own experience with being hounded by the media in the months leading up to his daughter's death when she was receiving treatment. This is definitely a point worthy of consideration. How can we expect the New Zealand media to be respectful in its reporting? This means placing trust in what is effectively an industry which makes money off dramatic headlines. I'm sure I'm not the only one who has seen stuff.co.nz go the way of the Daily Mail recently. Furthermore, as we've seen in England, the News of the World saw fit to hack into a murdered girl's phone just to get the best story.
An example where the media have more or less been given free rein is Ireland. Although there are guidelines in place, these are fairly regularly breached. A good friend of mine lived in Ireland for a couple of years and said she was fairly shocked by the headlines reporting on suicide or attempted suicide. They were all attention-grabby and as dramatic as possible. There is an organisation attempting to prevent this sort of reporting going on, but it is unclear how successful they have been.
Australia has taken a novel approach in being one of the only countries to address these issues in courses for aspiring journalists. Mediawise in the UK also offers a perspective which emphasises the need for ethics in the media and teaches about issues such as these. This seems to target the real problem which is blatant distrust in the media to report mental health and suicide issues respectfully.
The other day, figures released by the Mental Health Commission showed that New Zealand have the highest suicide rate in the OECD for young women. Young men in New Zealand also have the third highest rate of suicide in the OECD. Experts have called on the government to prioritise mental health services in order to address these figures. From a personal perspective, I think this would go some way towards addressing the issues. Mental health services in New Zealand are notoriously difficult to access even if you live in one of the country's main centres. This is not the fault of the professionals who run the services; the limited funding they receive can only be stretched so far and is understandably allocated to the most desperate cases. This makes early intervention very difficult and can often end in an ambulance at the bottom of the cliff-type scenario.
Focused mental health policies are needed and from this government we have seen quite the opposite. Funding cuts to ACC sensitive claims have made accessing help a lot harder for survivors of sexual violence. Moreover, there have been cuts to several mental health programmes as well as research into mental health outcomes. It is likely in the climate that National would have us believe we are in, more cuts will be forthcoming. A growing imprisonment rate will no doubt add to these issues as more people are exposed to unhealthy environments. Furthermore, as books like The Spirit Level show us that the growing inequality we are seeing in New Zealand is correlated with worsening mental health. Not only does this suggest that more needs to be done to support those at the bottom of the heap, but also offers explanations as to why New Zealand seems to feature so highly in suicide rates compared with other countries.
Suicide is one of the hardest to understand actions in my view. It is something that needs to be the focus of policy and very soon.
If you are feeling suicidal, PLEASE reach out to someone, and remember you are not alone. The following agencies can also be contacted:
New Zealand
Lifeline: 0800 543 354
Help for depression: 0800 111 757 depression.org.nz
The Lowdown: text 5626 or email team@thelowdown.co.nz
Youthline: 0800 37 66 33 Free text to 234 or email/MSN talk@youthline.co.nz
Australia
Lifeline Australia: 13 11 14
United States
1-800-273-TALK (8255)
1-800-784-2433
Canada
(403) 266-4357
UK & Ireland
UK: 08457 90 90 90
Republic of Ireland: 1850 60 90 90
Crisis centres for around the world can be found on this website: http://www.iasp.info/resources/Crisis_Centres/
What do you think is the best way we can address suicide?
Friday, August 5, 2011
Leaders of political parties should debate together
So it's been awhile, and for that I apologise. A sequence of presentations and assignments has drowned me in work and I've been feeling particularly uninspired to write posts over the past few weeks.
Three days ago, it was reported that John Key was refusing to debate anyone other than Phil Goff in the debates leading up to this year's elections. As someone who has watched these debates over the last few elections I think this is a mistake on Key's part and possibly a tactical move. Key may be good at smiling, talking to children and appealing to "middle New Zealanders" but debating is not one of his strong points, and even Phil Goff can beat him in that respect. There are so many issues that other party leaders could pull him up on that are particular to them, or that he promised in the last election and never lived up to. While we can expect Goff to pull him up on some of these issues, it's a shame we can't see him pulled up on others. Key would prefer, I think, to live in a two-party state, where his smarmy smile and empty promises could guarantee him a majority. However, as it currently stands (and as I hope it will continue to) under MMP, Key will likely have to rely on other political parties for a majority and this is why it's so important that he allows others into the debate.
Understandably a main issue for the Labour Party will be pulling Key up on capital gains tax, the rising cost of living and the fact that the "brain drain" has increased and we are still miles behind Australia, despite the promises of 2008. What I would like to see is the Green Party allowed to question Key about the treatment and othering of beneficiaries, the gender pay gap, environmental issues and housing. Or the Mana Party on the Takutai Moana Bill, the huge inequalities Maori continue to face in this country and the deadline for Treaty of Waitangi claims. By refusing to open himself up to debate on minority party issues, John Key is letting himself sit pretty and just answer questions he will be able to prepare himself for. This is a shame for people who don't wish to see either John Key OR Phil Goff as Prime Minister, of for people who are interested in issues that don't feature highly on either National or Labour's agenda. It seems that Key does not want to explain himself. In fact he would probably prefer to pander to celebrity talk-show hosts to elevate his profile elsewhere.
In other news, the "Vote for Change" campaign to get rid of MMP seems to have turned ugly. It seems, these days the way to attract attention to your cause is with homophobia, ableism, misogyny and just general grossness. I have no wish to associate myself with this sort of bigotry and I support MMP anyway (I have a pink Support MMP badge and it makes me happy), although I believe it could be improved but this can happen without getting rid of it completely!
That's all for now.
Ciao.
Three days ago, it was reported that John Key was refusing to debate anyone other than Phil Goff in the debates leading up to this year's elections. As someone who has watched these debates over the last few elections I think this is a mistake on Key's part and possibly a tactical move. Key may be good at smiling, talking to children and appealing to "middle New Zealanders" but debating is not one of his strong points, and even Phil Goff can beat him in that respect. There are so many issues that other party leaders could pull him up on that are particular to them, or that he promised in the last election and never lived up to. While we can expect Goff to pull him up on some of these issues, it's a shame we can't see him pulled up on others. Key would prefer, I think, to live in a two-party state, where his smarmy smile and empty promises could guarantee him a majority. However, as it currently stands (and as I hope it will continue to) under MMP, Key will likely have to rely on other political parties for a majority and this is why it's so important that he allows others into the debate.
Understandably a main issue for the Labour Party will be pulling Key up on capital gains tax, the rising cost of living and the fact that the "brain drain" has increased and we are still miles behind Australia, despite the promises of 2008. What I would like to see is the Green Party allowed to question Key about the treatment and othering of beneficiaries, the gender pay gap, environmental issues and housing. Or the Mana Party on the Takutai Moana Bill, the huge inequalities Maori continue to face in this country and the deadline for Treaty of Waitangi claims. By refusing to open himself up to debate on minority party issues, John Key is letting himself sit pretty and just answer questions he will be able to prepare himself for. This is a shame for people who don't wish to see either John Key OR Phil Goff as Prime Minister, of for people who are interested in issues that don't feature highly on either National or Labour's agenda. It seems that Key does not want to explain himself. In fact he would probably prefer to pander to celebrity talk-show hosts to elevate his profile elsewhere.
In other news, the "Vote for Change" campaign to get rid of MMP seems to have turned ugly. It seems, these days the way to attract attention to your cause is with homophobia, ableism, misogyny and just general grossness. I have no wish to associate myself with this sort of bigotry and I support MMP anyway (I have a pink Support MMP badge and it makes me happy), although I believe it could be improved but this can happen without getting rid of it completely!
That's all for now.
Ciao.
Saturday, July 16, 2011
The gender pay gap
It's been a pretty interesting few weeks in this little country to say the least.
Alasdair Thompson made a fool of himself and the organisation he represented. His comment that women take monthly sick days and are thus less productive because of menstruation understandably provoked a fair amount of outrage.
Predictably, the Employers and Manufacturers' Association eventually fired Alisdair Thompson, but not before he had attempted to justify his comments with "evidence" from a "woman at his work who does the accounts" who seemed to be aware of the pattern of women's periods. She was never brought out to back up any of these claims.
Alasdair Thompson made a fool of himself and the organisation he represented. His comment that women take monthly sick days and are thus less productive because of menstruation understandably provoked a fair amount of outrage.
Predictably, the Employers and Manufacturers' Association eventually fired Alisdair Thompson, but not before he had attempted to justify his comments with "evidence" from a "woman at his work who does the accounts" who seemed to be aware of the pattern of women's periods. She was never brought out to back up any of these claims.
It does highlight an important point in the issues surrounding gender wage gap, which as far as I know is around 13%. Legislation was introduced in the early 1990s to address this gap, but the discrimination continues. There are many arguments about how we can best address this gap, and a bill was tabled in Parliament by Catherine Delahunty to amend the Equal Pay Act. The gap in John Key's office between the pay afforded to men and women is a stunning 27.5%, despite the fact that just over half of his employees are female. He claims this is because women do lower down jobs, but in that case, why is he not employing more women to top positions? If in fact it is him who employs them, which I'm not sure of. The National Party are very hesitant to support amendments because there is much confusion about what the exact cause is of the pay gap. Alisdair Thompson in the now infamous interview brought up the fact that similar legislation had not changed the situation in England. He may have had a point in that, but it is my belief that anything which goes towards changing this gap, or finding out the reason for its existence is important and should be supported. As my friend Jared mentioned a few days ago, the fact that most of those saying women weren't as productive while commenting on Stuff in the middle of the day unwillingly illuminated their own (un)productivity.
I will update about more recent issues (Don Brash, Hone Harawira, ACT party in general etc.) in a few days.
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