CEDAW monitoring

Recommendation: 

(a) Maintain its dedication to ensuring the effective implementation of Security Council resolution 1325 (2000) on women, peace and security and subsequent resolutions in countries affected by conflict, including through ensuring that its national action plan contributes to significantly increasing the participation of women in peace processes;

Response: 

As part of the Action Plan on Women, Peace and Security 2015-2019, New Zealand’s approach to implementing UN Security Council resolutions will focus on four key areas: advocating for women's empowerment and participation in conflict and peacebuilding; increasing the number of women deployed in police and military roles; ensuring gender analysis informs New Zealand’s peace support responses; promoting efforts to combat sexual violence.

Police reports annually on the progress of its key areas of responsibility under the National Action Plan (NAP) for the Implementation of UN Security Council Resolution 1325 on Women, Peace and Security. New Zealand’s approach to implementing the NAP focuses on four key areas associated with peace-building and conflict prevention. These are: prevention, participation, protection, and peacebuilding, relief and recovery.

Wāhine Māori

Police is committed to moving its workforce to be representative of the communities we serve.  This includes ensuring we have representative levels of women, Māori and other ethnic groups within our recruitment, promotion and retention rates. This will support more wāhine Māori being able to participate in peace processes under the guidance of the National Action Plan.

 

Recommendation: 

(b) Allocate sufficient resources for the implementation of the national action plan and enhance the consultation with the women’s human rights organizations to ensure promoting the meaningful involvement of women at all stages in the women, peace and security agenda.

Response: 

Funding is provided from Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade's baseline funding.  Engagement with the International Women's Caucus and NGOs working in conflict areas (e.g., ICRC, Oxfam).

Recommendation: 

(a) Systematically collect data on harmful practices, including cyberbullying targeting teenage girls, and to implement measures, such as awareness campaigns in schools, to prevent such practices.

Response: 

Harmful Digital Communications Act 2015; Approved Agency - Netsafe works alongside government agencies including the Ministry of Education and Ministry of Justice.

The Ministry of Education supports an independent organisation called Netsafe to help students stay safe online by providing online safety education, advice and support. Netsafe has dedicated education advisors working alongside schools to develop digital citizenship and advice on online safety.

Netsafe offer a free and confidential online service to help people experiencing online bullying as well as specific guidance relating to gender-based online abuse and race-based online abuse.

Schools in New Zealand are self-governing and each school is responsible for providing a physically and emotionally safe environment for their students through the development and implementation of appropriate policies. This encompasses bullying prevention and response.

The Ministry of Education promotes a whole of school approach to bullying prevention and response. We work within a group called the Bullying Prevention Advisory Group (BPAG) which provides joined-up cross-agency expertise and guidance around the ongoing development of resources and supports targeting bullying prevention and response. 

While a whole of school approach is recommended, learning about bullying and its effects can also take place for young people through the Health and Physical Education learning area of the New Zealand curriculum. It links strongly to the key competencies within the curriculum which include ‘managing self’ and ‘relating to others’.

Wāhine Māori

To understand the prevalence of bullying behaviours in New Zealand Schools the New Zealand Government currently relies on data from sources such PISA (the Programme for International Student Assessment; 3-yearly) the TIMSS (the Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study; 4-yearly) and the PIRLS (the Progress in International Reading Literacy Study. Information relating specifically to wāhine Māori can be extracted provided the sample size is large enough in a given study year.

There are no specific policies aimed at Wāhine Māori with regards to anti-bullying. Schools in New Zealand are required to provide a physically and emotionally safe environment for all students and staff and this encompasses bullying prevention and response measures. The Ministry of Education encourages schools to utilise the Wellbeing@School (school climate) survey tools in order to help build an accurate picture of the experiences of their students and staff, determine where they can improve and take strategic action. The bullying prevention and response provisions aim to support schools to address bullying through the lens of the Bullying-Free NZ School framework. The Framework contains nine elements which evidence shows make up an effective whole school approach to bullying prevention and response including student leadership, agency and voice; targeted support and early response; effective use of data; working with parents, caregivers, whānau and the wider community; a positive school culture and climate that promotes respect and values diversity. In August 2019 the Bullying Prevention Advisory Group approved a work programme for 2019-2022. This programme includes actions which are aimed at gathering, acting upon and strengthening the voices of young people who are disproportionately impacted by bullying and to ensure strengthened te ao Māori and Pacific Peoples perspectives in ongoing  development of resources and initiatives.  

Recommendation: 

(b) Continue to combat harmful practices, in particular female genital mutilation (FGM), early and forced marriages, crimes in the name of so-called honour, dowry and polygamy, and systematically collect disaggregated data on those harmful practices.

Response: 

Police currently has policy in place around taking a multi-agency response to disclosures of forced and under age marriage. On 3 December 2018, a new offence was introduced with the Family Violence Act 2018 around coerced and underage marriage. Police has not filed a charge for this offence to date. 

In December 2012, Police signed a Letter of Agreement which outlines an inter-agency response for victims of forced and underaged marriage. 

The signatories to the Letter of Agreement with Police are: Child, Youth and Family, Work and Income and Family and Community Services (service lines of Ministry of Social Development), Ministry of Education and Immigration New Zealand.

Māori, Pacific and Ethnic Services within Police delivered FGM and forced and underaged marriage awareness training to new frontline recruits and the Crime Investigation Branch induction and selection course but acknowledge the offending goes largely unreported due to the vulnerability of victims.  This training will be delivered to staff engaging in any capacity with refugee communities at initial and local settlement levels.

Recommendation: 

(a) Take all necessary measures, including through increased resources, to facilitate access to secondary and tertiary education for rural girls and women.

Response: 

The Government’s renewed focus on the regions, including the $1 billion annual Provincial Growth fund, and a focus on “rural proofing” policies and initiatives in their design stages provides a significant opportunity to improve outcomes for rural women and girls [see background].  Investment in the regions and a gender lens on rural proofing could benefit rural women through better targeted health policies, increased job opportunities and improved access to services.

The Government provides funding to Adult and Community Education which  support more rural woman to access education in their communities.  

The Ministry of Education provides transport assistance where distance, or accessibility for students with special needs, may be a barrier to students attending the closest school they can enrol at. The majority of our assistance is provided in rural areas because there is no public transport available. For eligible students, this assistance is fully funded by the Ministry.

The Ministry of Education provides additional funding to schools deemed to be isolated. (Targeted Funding for Isolation). This benefits girls and boys equally.

A free regional bus service for tertiary students will be launched in 2020 across the Bay of Plenty Region.

The service is a joint venture between the University of Waikato, Toi-Ohomai Institute of Technology and the Bay of Plenty Regional Council, with each organisation contributing funds to make the service available, along with a grant from the New Zealand Transport Association (NZTA).

The service will mean students from around the Bay in Katikati, Rotorua and Whakatāne will be able to travel into Tauranga and back every weekday from 1 February 2020 to 20 December 2020.

Wāhine Māori

Students attending Kura Kaupapa Māori and designated character wharekura providing education under Section 155 or 156 of the Education Act 1989, that teach all or some curriculum subjects in Te Reo Māori for at least 51 percent of the time (Māori language immersion levels 1-2), may be eligible for transport assistance even if this school is not their closest school. This is because we take into consideration the level of Māori language immersion offered that caregivers may wish their tamariki/children to access.

Though the majority of students in Kura Kauapapa and Wharekura are Māori, this is a small percentage of the wāhine Māori population as whole. 

Recommendation: 

(b) Ensure the inclusion in school curricula of mandatory, culturally sensitive and age-appropriate education on sexual and reproductive health and rights and responsible sexual behaviour, focusing on the prevention and the consequences of early pregnancy and sexually transmitted infections.

Response: 

Schools are required to develop programmes that best meet the needs as of their students as identified by the community. There is no compulsion around what content is taught within health education. An individual school’s health education programme will be localised to reflect the mandatory community consultation that must take place at least every two years. This will dictate what topics are taught. The Ministry does however provide comprehensive guidance to schools about what and how sexuality education should be covered.

The Ministry of Education in New Zealand is currently embarking on another refresh of our guidance to schools to strengthen aspects of overall wellbeing, relationships, LGBTIQA+ issues and issues relating to pornography. The Sexuality Education Guidelines are also likely to be renamed Relationship and Sexuality Guidelines, partly to increase primary school engagement.

Find out more on the Ministry of Education website.

Wāhine Māori

Ministry of Health:

The majority of providers of community and school based sexual and reproductive health promotion are Māori and work with Māori communities and young people. The qualitative data collected about providers work e.g. the groups they work with, and resources produced is used for quality improvement and provider support. 

Recommendation: 

(c) Provide girls with a safe educational environment free from discrimination and sexual violence and include education on non-violence in the curricula

Response: 

Schools are required to develop programmes that best meet the needs as of their students as identified by the community. There is no compulsion around what content is taught within health education. An individual school’s health education programme will be localised to reflect the mandatory community consultation that must take place at least every two years. This will dictate what topics are taught. The Ministry does however provide comprehensive guidance to schools about what and how sexuality education should be covered.

The Ministry of Education in New Zealand is currently embarking on another refresh of our guidance to schools to strengthen aspects of overall wellbeing, relationships, LGBTIQA+ issues and issues relating to pornography. The Sexuality Education Guidelines are also likely to be renamed Relationship and Sexuality Guidelines, partly to increase primary school engagement.

Find out more here.

Recommendation: 

(b) Consider adopting a new law based on the recommendations of the reconvened joint working group on pay equity principles, with a view to applying it to both the public and private sectors

Response: 

Government has introduced the Equal Pay Amendment Bill to provide a process for raising and progressing a pay equity claim, based on the recommendations of the Joint Working Group (JWG) and the Reconvened Joint Working Group (RJWG). This Bill makes it easier for employees to make a pay equity claim, using a more simple and accessible process within New Zealand’s existing bargaining framework, rather than through the court system.

Two settlements (e.g. Ministry of Education support workers, Oranga Tamariki statutory social workers) have been settled using the JWG and RJWG principles, in advance of the Bill being enacted, and more are underway (e.g. teacher aides, DHB admin and clerical workers, DHB nurses and midwives,  and DHB allied and technical, NGO social workers and support workers).

Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE) has received $1 million funding for 12 months to develop online tools and resources which will improve peoples’ understanding of the pay equity claims process, by providing guidance and data for their claims.

Recommendation: 

(c) Adopt and enforce the principle of equal pay for work of equal value in a revised employment relations legislation covering both public and private workplaces, including through analytical job classification and evaluation methods and regular pay surveys, and regularly review wages in sectors in which women are concentrated.

Response: 

Part of the process for bargaining a pay equity settlement under the Equal Pay Amendment Bill will involve assessment of the work being performed and the remuneration paid to those performing the work, and the work performed by, and remuneration paid to, appropriate comparators.

The Public Sector Gender Pay Gap and Equity Taskforce has issued guidance and resources on removing bias from salary-setting, recruitment, negotiating flexible work arrangements, career progression and remuneration in the public sector.

Wāhine Māori

Household Labour Force and Census data can be used to break down the population of employees in particular occupations by hourly wage, ethnicity, and gender. This can give an indication of any low-paid sectors where wāhine Māori are overrepresented as a proportion of the occupation, or the low paid  occupations where wahine Māori are most likely to work. Whilst the low pay in each of these sectors may not necessarily be a pay equity issue, this information can still inform where pay equity claims are likely to have the greatest effect for wāhine Māori.

Recommendation: 

(d) Adopt temporary special measures to address occupational segregation and ensure that women and men have equal promotion opportunities.

Response: 

More broadly, the Government is working on several initiatives to attract and retain priority groups of women in occupations where high growth is projected and women are underrepresented, such as trades, science, technology, engineering and mathematics. MBIE published the Diversity in Science Statement in 2018 and has drafted a letter of expectation to all Crown Research Institutes which included expectation of progress in closing gender pay gaps and ensuring a diverse workplace. The draft Research Science and Innovation Strategy also includes a focus on increasing the diversity of the research, science and innovation workforce.

The Government’s employment strategy includes population-focused action plans to address persistently poor labour market outcomes. While there is currently no plan expressly focused on women, plans such as those focused on improving employment and training outcomes for youth, Maori and Pacific, and older workers will have a strong cross-sectional focus on addressing gender inequities.

There are a number of government initiatives across a range of other portfolios which impact on outcomes for wāhine  Māori, including the Government’s response to the Welfare Expert Advisory Group, the Provincial Growth Fund  (especially te Ara Mahi),  Te Kupenga’s E Rērē action plan, the Tomorrow’s Schools Review (especially its Māori focus), the next phase of the Ka Hikitia (the Māori education strategy), and Te Kotahitanga (a programme to improve education outcomes for Māori learners).

Recommendation: 

(a) Continue raising awareness among women about their rights under the Convention and on the procedures under the Optional Protocol to the Convention, with particular emphasis on the concept of substantive equality.

Response: 

The Government raises awareness of CEDAW in several ways, including having publicly available information on government websites, inviting public submissions on draft periodic reports to CEDAW and providing information on how to do so. 

Mana Wāhine

In 2019, the Ministry for Women established the Mana Wāhine roopū which has two functions. These are to coordinate the Government response to the Mana Wāhine Kaupapa Inquiry and to work across Government agencies to improve outcomes for wāhine Māori. It is expected that the roopū will aid in increasing knowledge and visibility about CEDAW.

Recommendation: 

(b) Disseminate information, in particular in rural and remote areas, about the legal remedies available to women regarding violations of their rights

Response: 

Police partners with communities, iwi, and non-government organisations to share information, which includes providing legal updates and advice for victims. Police, on behalf of the Family Violence and Sexual Violence Joint Venture, host the Integrated Safety Response (ISR) initiatives in Canterbury and Waikato, and Whāngaia Ngā Pā Harakeke (WNPH) sites in a number of areas across New Zealand.  Both of these responses are designed to ensure victims, perpetrators, families and whānau receive the help they need when they need it in relation to family violence. In relation to family harm call outs more generally, the report that is filled out by frontline officers when they attend a family harm event contains a prompt to advise victims of the availability of services and responses.

Recommendation: 

(c) Strengthen gender responsiveness and gender sensitivity within the judiciary, including by increasing the number of women judges and strengthening systematic capacity-building for judges, prosecutors, lawyers, police officers and other law enforcement officials on the Convention.

Response: 

Police is committed to moving its workforce to be representative of the communities we serve.  This includes ensuring we have representative levels of Women, Māori and other ethnic groups within our recruitment, promotion and retention rates. A programme of work on unconscious bias is currently being rolled out to all our people. NZ Police has a goal of half of all recruits being female, and is committed to increasing the number of women at all ranks. This is being achieved by increasing the number of women entering Police, and ensuring that they, and existing staff, are retained and developed to their full potential. 

A programme of work is underway to embed flexible working arrangements. This will make it easier for women to join Police on flexible work arrangements. Progress to date shows women now account for around one in five constabulary staff, and work across the full range of policing activities. Women also hold a range of key leadership roles within Police, including on the Police Executive, as District Commanders, and as the head of major operations and work groups.

Wāhine Māori

NZ Police aims to increase the number of Māori to be represented of their proportion of the population by 2023, recruitment targets have been set to achieve this goal. Since July 2017 the number of wāhine Māori within the Constabulary workforce has grown by 38%.

Recommendation: 

(a) Adopt a comprehensive and cross-party strategy on combatting gender based violence against women in accordance with general recommendation No. 35 (2017) on gender-based violence against women, updating general recommendation No. 19 and ensure its consistent implementation, including by strictly applying the Family and Whānau Violence Legislation Bill and by, inter alia, including measures that specifically protect women with disabilities that are confronting abusive care-givers.

Response: 

Police, on behalf of the Family Violence and Sexual Violence Joint Venture, hosts the Integrated Safety Response (ISR) initiatives in Canterbury and Waikato, and Whāngaia Ngā Pā Harakeke (WNPH) sites in a number of areas across New Zealand. Both of these responses are designed to ensure victims, perpetrators, families and whānau receive the help they need when they need it in relation to family violence. 

Recommendation: 

(b) Conduct public awareness-raising programmes in collaboration with teachers and the media, including social media, to promote understanding of the criminal nature of gender-based violence against women and encourage victims and witnesses to report violence.

Response: 

Police:

Police’s healthy relationships initiative for senior secondary students, Loves-Me-Not (LMN), is a whole-school approach to promoting healthy relationships and preventing unhealthy behaviour in relationships.  It includes a one-day workshop delivered by a three-person team (teachers, police officer, NGO representative) in which year 12 and/or 13 students discuss healthy and abusive behaviour in relationships.

LMN is not gender-based but a session on statistics within the workshop outlines the preponderant impact of unhealthy relationships on women. 

In 2018, LMN was implemented in more schools (126) and more classes (565) which continued the steady upwards trend of previous years. The past year’s LMN evaluation revealed the highest-ever percentage of positive process results and the lowest-ever percentage of neutral or negative results.

Police is not conducting any public awareness-raising programmes in relation to gender-based violence against women. However, Police is active on social media around milestone events such as White Ribbon day and major family violence forums. 

Education:

Addressing domestic violence requires working in new and different ways across government, with all communities. Through the new Wellbeing Budget process, 10 government agencies have taken shared responsibility for this issue through a joint venture, and developed a single, whole-of-government package of initiatives to address New Zealand's long-term record on family and sexual violence.

The Ministry of Social Development leads public awareness campaigns (for example; It's Not Okay, E Tu Whānau) so they should be identified as a responsible agency.

Addressing family and sexual violence and better supporting survivors is a major feature of the Wellbeing Budget, with the Government delivering the largest ever investment in family and sexual violence and support services.

The Budget package delivers more support services to more New Zealanders, major campaigns aimed at stopping violence occurring and major changes to court processes to reduce the trauma victims experience through a $320 million package.

The family and sexual violence package, which sits across eight portfolios, includes funding and support for:

One million New Zealanders covered by Integrated Safety Response sites (Christchurch and Waikato), and 350,000 by the Whāngaia Ngā Pā Harakeke and Whiria Te Muka sites (in Gisborne, Counties Manukau and Kaitaia).

24/7 sexual violence crisis support services for up to 2,800 children and young people every year, and an additional 7,700 adult victims and survivors from 2020/21.

Funding for major advertising campaigns and intervention programmes to reduce violence occurring.

Using video victim statements to reduce trauma for up to 30,000 victims of family violence every year, and reduce time spent in court.

Enabling victims of sexual violence to give evidence in court in alternative ways in order to reduce the risk of experiencing further trauma, and providing specialist training for lawyers in sexual violence cases.

Specialist training for lawyers in sexual violence cases.

Improving the wellbeing of male victims and survivors of sexual violence through peer support services – up to 1,760 from 2020/21 onwards.

Dedicated funding for a kaupapa Māori response to sexual violence.

Training for health practitioners in District Health Boards.

Recommendation: 

(c) Strengthen capacity-building and awareness-raising campaigns as well as training for judges, law enforcement officials and welfare personnel on all forms of gender-based violence and abuse and the specific protection needs of migrant women, with a view to ensuring that victims are under no circumstances forced or put under pressure to accept mediation and alternative dispute resolution methods in lieu of criminal proceedings against perpetrators

Response: 

The Detective Qualifying course has a three hour session on demystifying Islam. This builds an awareness regarding gender-based violence and issues for migrant women. This is followed by scenario-based exercises incorporating these issues and consolidating the learning. Detective Development Programme E-Modules has a component on people trafficking, an associated issue. In 2020 a review of the Detective Development Programme E-Modules will be conducted. Relevant legislation will be included in this review. This creates an opportunity to further develop this topic.

Alternative dispute resolution methods are a key component of Police’s strategy to reduce reoffending by providing a more humane and effective approach than prosecution in court. While they are not available for family harm-related offending, they are offered in cases of common assault, which may be against a woman.

Victim’s opinions are sought before a decision is made to refer to any alternative dispute resolution method. They must give informed consent to be offered the opportunity to take part, and can refuse to take part. As the alternative resolution can go ahead without the victim, there is no pressure to participate.

Recommendation: 

(d) Allocate resources aimed at developing a comprehensive prevention strategy for gender-based violence against women.

Response: 

Police family harm policy informs the prevention first strategy to reduce gender-based violence against women. The Family Harm Policy and Procedure, Family Harm Quality Assurance Framework, Protection and Property Order, Police Safety Orders, Information Sharing, Victim Relocations, Forced and Under Age Marriage chapters of the Police Instructions were all updated in May 2018 after 5F – Safer Whānau – Police Practice was rolled out. This policy was further updated in July 2019 as a result of the Family Violence Act 2018 which introduced three new offences of strangulation, assaults person in a family relationship and coercion to marriage / civil union.

Wāhine Māori

The Police family harm strategy includes consideration of violence against wāhine Māori.

Recommendation: 

(f) Collect and report to the Committee disaggregated data on the number of cases of violence against women that have been investigated and that have led to prosecutions, including information on the sanctions imposed on perpetrators; Women victims of violence who have been provided with legal assistance and relevant support services; Women victims of violence who have been compensated.

Response: 

On 30 November 2016, NZ Police launched policedata.nz to provide easy access to Police crime data through a number of interactive reports that can be accessed from this page. Data are updated in these reports on the last working day of every month. The data Police collects can be disaggregated by offence type, sex, relationship of offender to victim and ethnicity. The reports include the number of proceedings against offenders during a relevant period and provide an overview of trends in proceedings against offenders.

Wāhine Māori

The ability to disaggregate data by ethnicity and sex allows information and specific data trends relating to wāhine Māori to be monitored.  

This information is available here.

Recommendation: 

(h) Ensure effective coordination and collaboration among the entities responsible for combating gender-based violence.

Response: 

Police, on behalf of the Family Violence and Sexual Violence Joint Venture, host the Integrated Safety Response (ISR) initiatives in Canterbury and Waikato. 

ISR sites include multi-agency governance and management structures to provide support and strategic oversight. At the heart of the ISR response are daily triage meetings, personnel to identify risks and issues, problem-solving, planning a co-ordinated response, and reviewing case progress, together with the weekly Intensive Case Management of high-risk cases. Family Safety Plans are made with the families and whānau involvement. The majority (80%) of ISR funding is spent on specialist services. ISR is a cross agency approach to crisis response to family harm episodes. 

Whāngaia Ngā Pā Harakeke (WNPH) is a Police initiated operational model. It is based on a national principles framework that focuses on reducing family harm and reducing the impact of family harm on those families/whānau who are enduring, or at risk. WNPH is a collaborative, system-wide approach where Police, iwi, other agencies and NGOs work together to assess risk and deploy resources to address harm.

Wāhine Māori

Whāngaia Ngā Pā Harakeke involves iwi Māori in the response, with the aim that it is relevant to, and effective for wāhine Māori.