John MacDonald: Tutt-tutting and more reports won't save lives

You might be thinking the revelation that at-risk kids in New Zealand are no safer than they were three years ago, when a 5-year-old boy was beaten, burned and murdered by his carer, has nothing to do with you. But think again. 

Where this has all come from, is a report by the Independent Children's Monitor as to whether the care system in this country has improved since Malachi Subecz died after being abused for months by his “carer”, Michaela Barriball. 

She’s in prison. When she was sent away, she was told it would be for, at least, 17 years. 

And when that Malachi's story emerged, there was a lot of the tut-tutting and ‘this can’t happen again” talk. But it has happened again. More kids have been injured, more kids have been killed. 

The Chief Children's Commissioner Claire Achmad said on Newstalk ZB this morning that an urgent response is needed, But based on past performance and experience, I don't think that will happen. 

Because, if we were really serious, we would have done something before now.  

We would have done something before this report came out, telling us that at-risk kids are no safer than they were when Malachi was murdered. No safer, despite all the reports and the words and the reassurances that things will change and the serious faces. No safer. 

And one of the reasons for that, is the so-called care and protection system in this country.  

After Malachi was murdered, a review was done and it came up with 14 recommendations to try and improve things and make kids safer. Guess how many of them have been acted on? One. The other 13 are gathering dust. 

If I was to summarise what those recommendations were, a lot of them were about getting all the different government departments and agencies working better together, sharing information, and making sure kids like Malachi don’t fall between the cracks. 

And let’s face it, that was never going to happen. 

I don’t know if you’ve had experience of how government departments work —I have— and the last thing they do is share information and co-operate with other government departments. They protect their patches and their budgets and all they care about is jumping when the government minister in charge of them says jump. 

In recent years they've been banging-on about this thing they call an “all of government response”. Probably one time that actually came close to working was during COVID, rest of the time: if it’s not their department, it’s not their department. 

Which is why I have very little faith that our care and protection system is going to get any better than it is now. Where we have, as the Chief Children's Commissioner said this morning, one child on average dying every five weeks from homicide. 

But the system isn’t the only problem. You and I - we have to up our game too. 

Because we treat care and protection of at-risk kids the same way we treat pretty much everything else in this country. We get someone in to do it, we contract it out. Out of mind, out of sight. 

You know: “We’re too busy dealing with our own stuff. We don’t have time to sort out deadbeat parents and caregivers.” That’s the attitude, isn’t it?  

But if we keep on having that attitude - that it’s up to the State to sort it; and if the State continues to completely fail these poor little kids; then we can write as many reports with as many recommendations as we like, but nothing is going to change. 

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:06):
You're listening to the Canterbury Morning's Podcast with John McDonald
from News Talk ZB.

Speaker 2 (00:13):
At risk kids in New Zealand are no safer than
they were three years ago when a five year old
boy was beaten, burned and murdered by his carer. Now
you might be thinking, oh, that's terrible, nothing to do
with me though, Well you might want to think again
on that one. I'll tell you why in a second.

(00:33):
Where this has all come from is a report by
the Independent Children's Monitor as to whether the care system
in this country has improved in any way, shape or
form since the wee joker from the Bay of Plenty
Malchai subsh died. And just to remind you, he was
abused for months by his Cara Mikhaela Barraball, who would

(00:58):
give him beatings and burn him and in November twenty
twenty one she murdered him. She's in prison, of course.
When she was said away, she was told it would
be for at least seventeen years. And when that all
came out, especially when the trial was happening, there was
a lot of tout tousting, wasn't there a lot of
you know, this can't happen again, and all blah blah

(01:19):
blah blah, But it has happened again. More kids have
been injured since then, more kids have been killed. You
might have heard the Chief Children's Commissioner, Claire Akmed talking
to Mike this morning. She didn't mince. Their words have
listened to us.

Speaker 3 (01:34):
Still, children are not as visible as they need to
be by the systems that are there to keep them safe.
And you know, in the light of the Royal Commission
of Inquiry, in light of the fact that we still
have one child dying every five weeks on average homicide,

(01:54):
this has to galvanize us to real action now because
we can't afford to keep living children in situations where
they are potentially going to be farmed. We have to act,
and we just to do that with urgency.

Speaker 2 (02:10):
I'll tell you right now though, based on past performance
and experience, we won't do anything with urgency. In fact,
I don't think we'll do anything at all, because if
we were really serious, we would have done something before now.
We would have done something before this update report came
out telling us that at risk kids are no safer

(02:31):
than they were when Malachi was murdered, no safer despite
all the reports and the words and the reassurances that
things will change and all the serious faces, the kids
are no safer. And one of the reasons for that
is the so called care and protection system in this country.
One of the reasons. Now, do you know that after
Malachi was murdered, a review was done and it came

(02:53):
up with fourteen recommendations to try and improve things and
make kids safer. How many of them have been acted on?
One the other thirteen gathering dust? And if I was
going to summarize what those recommendations were from the first report,
a lot of them were about getting all the different
government departments and agencies working better together. You are sharing information,

(03:15):
making sure that kids like Malachi don't fall between the cracks.
And let's face it, that was optimistic. That was never
going to happen. I don't know if you've had experience
of how government department's work.

Speaker 3 (03:27):
I have.

Speaker 2 (03:29):
And the last thing they do is share information, and
the last thing they do is cooperate with other government departments.
They protect their patches, that protect their budgets, and pretty
much all they care about is jumping. When the government
minister in charge of them says jump that's how it is,
despite the fact that in recent years they've been banging
on about this thing they call and all of government response.

(03:52):
Now probably one time that actually came close to working
was during COVID, when all these departments didn't seem to
talk to each other. More rest of the time, if
it's not their department, it's not their department. Which is
why I have very little faith that our care and
protection system is going to get any better than it
is now. Where we have, as the Chief Children's Commissioner

(04:14):
said this morning, one child on average dying every week
from homicide every five weeks, I should say from homicide
one child every five weeks. But the system isn't the
only problem. You and I. We have to up our
game as well, because we treat care and protection of
at risk kids the same way we treat pretty much
everything else in this country. You know, we get someone

(04:35):
in to do it. We contract it out out of mind,
out of sight. You know. Oh, we're too too busy
dealing with our own stuff. We don't have time to
sort out these dead beat parents and caregivers. See attitude,
isn't it. I'm not saying that that's the attitude, but
if we keep on having that attitude that it's up
to the state to sort it, and then if the

(04:56):
state continues to completely fail these poor little kids, then
we can write as many reports with as many recommendations
as we like, but nothing is going to change.

Speaker 1 (05:07):
For more from Category Mornings with John McDonald, listen live
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