Kia whakatōmuri te haere whakamua.

I walk backwards into the future with my eyes fixed on the past.

Nau mai, tauti mai ki te whārangi ipurangi o te whakatewhatewha Māori.

Welcome to the Māori investigation webpage.

The Māori investigation examines issues that are relevant to Māori experiences of abuse in State and faith-based care. It has been established to share the voices of Māori survivors and their whānau, hapū and iwi, and the range of backgrounds and experiences of Māori survivors.

Te Tiriti o Waitangi and its principles, and tikanga Māori are essential in informing the work of the Māori investigation.

The Māori investigation is undertaking two key strands of work: looking back and looking forward. We are investigating:

• the circumstances that led to Māori tamariki, rangatahi and vulnerable adults being taken into or placed into care
• the appropriateness of where Māori survivors were placed, including whether they were placed with whānau, hapū and iwi, non-kin or residential care
• the nature and extent of abuse of Māori survivors in care
• The State’s obligations under te Tiriti o Waitangi
• the structural, systemic and practical factors that caused or contributed to Māori survivors being abused in care
• impacts of the abuse on Māori survivors and their whānau, hapū, iwi, and communities, including immediate, long term, and intergenerational impacts
• Māori experiences of abuse in care between 1950 to 1999, which is the main period of our investigation
• Māori experiences of abuse in care before 1950 and from
• the current systems for preventing and responding to abuse against Māori, to investigate whether these are fit-for-purpose and recommend changes that need to be made to ensure that what occurred cannot happen again
• the current frameworks and any new legislation, policy, rules, standards and practices that need to be developed to prevent and respond to the abuse of Māori in care
• whether changes to legislation, policies, rules, standards, and practices – including oversight mechanisms – are required to protect Māori children, young people, and vulnerable adults in the future.

The Māori investigation is guided by an investigation scope document that sets out the issues and topics that will be examined during the investigation.

The Māori investigation is working alongside the Royal Commission’s other inquiries into abuse in State and faith-based care settings. You can read more about these on the Our inquiries page.