Coming In From The Cold

26 New Zealand male survivors share their personal stories of sexual abuse

In a new publication that records the last 10 years in the development of Tautoko Tāne Aotearoa, you will read the stories of 26 Tautoko Tāne staff and clients who have generously shared their survivor experiences to raise awareness of the impacts of sexual violence and to support the important work of the only national network in New Zealand that is dedicated to enabling the wellbeing of male survivors.

News & Events

Community is first of all a quality of the heart. It grows from the spiritual knowledge that we are alive not for ourselves but for one another.

Henri Nouwen

More children abused in care, report finds

Almost one in 10 tamariki and rangatahi are being abused or neglected in state care, a report by the Independent Children’s Monitor has found. Between July 2023 and June last year, 507 of 5722 children were abused or neglected while in the custody of Oranga Tamariki. The number of those in state care had decreased…

Abuse survivors and their supporters protest for ACC eligibility change

A group of abuse survivors, accompanied by two horses, have marched into Accident Compensation Corporation (ACC) offices in Christchurch. Among the protesters’ demands is that ACC reforms eligibility for coverage for abuse survivors, immediate redress and an end to government’s boot camps. The about two dozen survivors of abuse in care and their supporters marched…

Peer Support for Youth with Mental Health Concerns: A Scoping Review

Large research scoping study leaves no doubt about the benefits of peer support in supporting the recovery of young people suffering from mental health conditions. Peer support has increasingly been integrated into youth mental health programs globally. Peer support workers are an important ally in an individual’s recovery journey, providing both emotional and instrumental support…

The disappeared

Solitary confinement destroys people, but New Zealand continues to inflict it on our most vulnerable and damaged people, including children, as a matter of course. Aaron Smale reports on the practice that won’t go away and the people that are psychologically annihilated and physically disappeared in state institutions. Shane was locked in a concrete box…

Tautoko Tāne Aotearoa publishes a brief history of the last ten years developing a national network to enable the wellbeing of New Zealand male survivors of sexual violence.

The publication, Coming In From The Cold, includes the experiences of 26 male survivors, generously shared by Tautoko Tāne staff and clients with editor Bex De Prospo Carr and ably crafted by her pen. The history is summarised in four seasonal essays contributed by Tautoko Tāne Lead Educator, Fiona Clapham Howard, who is also a…

Aaron Smale: An apology both sincere and hollow

For me the most powerful words were virtually unintelligible. Gary Williams is severely disabled and in a wheelchair, but that did not limit the power of his words, which were flashed up on a screen behind him. He was the first survivor to speak at the event. He spoke directly to the Government and you…

The full text of Christopher Luxon’s Crown apology to abuse survivors

It “is a significant, sorrowful but important day” for the country, Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has said in his formal apology to abuse victims at Parliament. Survivors around the country gathered and tuned in to proceedings at Parliament, where a ballot-selected group of abuse survivors are also in the public gallery. Here is the full text of…

For abuse in care survivors, an apology without action means nothing

As we drew closer to the date of the public apology, the response minister Erica Stanford began preparing abuse victims for disappointment. It’s clear that redress will not accompany the national apology tomorrow. There are a number of “extraordinarily complex decisions” yet to be made “which are still going through the Cabinet process”, she said last week. For those…

Sorry means you don’t do it again

Luxon surprised a number of people, myself included, when the Royal Commission’s final report was tabled in July by acknowledging that the abuse suffered by hundreds of children at the Lake Alice adolescent unit in the 1970s was torture.  And he said sorry. For over 50 years successive governments have avoided facing up to the…

The Inland Revenue Department has confirmed that Male Survivors Te Ta Tokerau has Donation Organisation Status and we welcome Donations to our Charitable Trust. Individuals making donations can claim Tax Credits for income tax purposes for cash donations of $5 or more, see Section LD 1 of the Income Tax Act 2007.

Tax Deductions

Please email us including your address to [email protected] for your receipt which you will need for tax purposes.