In this episode, we speak with Deputy Commissioner of NZ Police Wallace Haumaha about a marae-based restorative justice alternative that addresses the underlying causes of low-level offending behaviour: Te Pae Oranga.
Te Pae Oranga is an initiative covering Iwi and community justice panels. The initiative fits within the Iwi and community partnerships workstream of NZ Police’s current work program entitled ‘The Safest Country – Policing 2021’. Iwi and community justice panels provide an alternative justice outcome for people who commit low-level offences where it is not in the public interest to prosecute. The panels operate in the pre-charge space, where those involved work together to address the harm caused, develop a plan that addresses factors related to the offending, and helps get the offender’s life on a more positive path.
Independent evaluations of Te Pae Oranga have found that this initiative has yielded significant cost benefits and either reduced reoffending or reduced the harm caused from reoffending.
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