He asked if New Zealand should rather have a Maori care and protection system with some clip-ons for Pakeha.

Becroft is New Zealand's children's commissioner and a former principal Youth Court judge.

He was addressing at this year's Te Hunga Roia Maori o Aotearoa (New Zealand Maori Law Society) annual conference last Friday.

However, he is optimistic about the present generation, telling the law students and young lawyers, "you have been accorded a second chance that we blew." The new Oranga Tamariki Act, implemented in July, has an even stronger focus on whanau, hapu and iwi.

Another speaker, Judge Soana Moala, who was appointed to the bench a year ago, said even at the Manukau District Court - where many cases involved Maori and Pasifika - "section 27" reports were rare.

Section 27 of the Sentencing Act allows offenders to request the court to hear submissions on the personal, family, whanau, community, and cultural background of the offender.

"A lot of these older white male judges only see young brown faces in court, so they only see ones that are facing really serious charges," she said.

[They don't get] to see what I see all the time, which is young, talented, clever, amazing young brown faces."

Source

• Teuila Fuatai. Newsroom
• Teuila Fata. Newsroom
• Image: Te Ara

He told an international justice conference television cameras "lie to the viewer" and broadcasters have not met their obligation to fairly and accurately report court cases. In calling for a review of the judiciary's decision to allow cameras in courts, he claimed an ill-informed public's demand for tougher criminal justice policies arose from a diet of incomplete and sensationalised televising of high-profile cases. Read more

Sources

• Editorial, The New Zealand Herald
• Image: TV3 News