Dear Government: Jail Doesn’t Fix Traumatised Kids

Our founder, Kristina Cavit shares her whakaaro on the flaws in the Government's youth bootcamp and how it’s time to listen to rangatahi and Māori-led solutions that actually work.

It’s easy to write off people that look different, speak differently or have different experiences than you. But in my 13 years of youth work, I’ve seen that essentially all rangatahi just want to be loved, heard and supported. They’re not going to find that in a boot camp.

Right now, this government wants to take our most vulnerable rangatahi and throw them into military-style boot camps. Over 80% of youth offenders have experienced family violence. The Oranga Tamariki Youth Serious Offenders Bill not only ignores the trauma these young people face, but it also condones physical force against children. It fast-tracks children (14-17) into the criminal system which increases long-term criminal behavior. This bill also categorises rangatahi (young people) as serious offenders, which will stigmatise them and will have effects on them into their adult lives.

There is NO solid evidence that military style academies reduce youth offending. In fact, the evidence shows it increases trauma which makes it harder for young people to turn their lives around. The 3-month boot camp trial recently conducted by the government proved one thing: it doesn’t work. Organisations like Save the Children New Zealand, the Paediatric Society of New Zealand (PSNZ), the Children and Young People's Commission, Ara Taiohi and The Kindness Institute oppose the The Oranga Tamariki Youth Serious Offenders Bill, as it undermines children's legal right to protection from violence.

Te Aorangi Kowhai-Morini (21) is a youth mental health advocate and Board Member at The Kindness Institute, and a leader in transforming whānau mental health through the TAIORA program. She has spoken out against the The Oranga Tamariki Youth Serious Offenders Bill—because she knows firsthand that punishment doesn’t heal trauma. She highlighted how Māori will be disproportionately impacted and how we need to listen to our communities if we want real solutions. This bill was created without consultation with rangatahi and tangata whenua— a failure that ignores Te Tiriti o Waitangi and the rights of those most affected. We cannot let policies be shaped without the voices of those who live the reality.

We know that violence creates more violence. I’ve seen many young people navigate extreme adversity, and not once was the solution found in force. But the solution is already out there, and it’s happening everyday. From my experience, change can only be achieved with a combination of evidence based mahi, aroha and connection.

Te Whare Tapa Whā, developed by Tā Mason Durie, is the most widely respected health model in Aotearoa—proven to nurture the mental, physical, spiritual, and social well-being of our people. This model is the foundation of our training programs at TAIORA, which empowers whānau and those who support rangatahi with the tools to navigate life's challenges. Meanwhile, our charity The Kindness Institute works directly with rangatahi, helping them build emotional regulation and self-belief. Together, these kaupapa provide a proven, community-led solution—one that strengthens our young people rather than punishing them.

When rangatahi come to our program their hoods are up, heads are down and they won’t look you in the eyes. They leave the program smiling, speaking in front of a group, with the ability to regulate their emotions. They leave not just with skills to manage some of life's challenges, but with something even more powerful—belief in themselves, surrounded by a community that sees them, values them, and walks beside them as they face life’s challenges. This is after just 4 days of support and care, imagine what you could do if it was properly funded long term.

Through emotional regulation, connection and compassion, our rangatahi can face life’s toughest challenges without breaking. Without this support, they are left vulnerable to their environment, making choices that can pull them deeper into trauma or crime.

But everything in this legislation is a disconnection from all of this. It disconnects rangatahi from the support of their social networks, their whānau, from the safety of their tinana (body), from the grounding of their hinengaro (mind), and from the nurturing of their wairua (spirit). This bill ignores the very things that allow rangatahi to thrive. This bill isolates, it disempowers and it puts our most vulnerable young people in danger.

Minister for Children Karen Chhour, would you let your child go to an isolated lock up where police can use violence against them? If it were your child, would you choose to punish them into submission, or help them to create a future that they can be proud of? Do we want to educate and uplift our young people like we would our own, or will we keep pretending that ‘those kids’ are not our problem?

Minister Joseph Mooney - In the oral submissions against this bill I saw you ask various leading youth organisations what they would propose instead of detaining rangatahi who may harm others. The research overwhelmingly supports de-escalation, connection and trauma-informed approaches over the use of restraint when working with young people. If you’d like a wānanga on supporting young people with emotional regulation, in redirecting, in connecting with rangatahi in distress, nau mai, haere mai, Minister – let’s kōrero.

This bill is an embarrassment—wasting taxpayer money while causing irreparable harm for generations to come. If we are serious about stopping crime, we need to be serious about supporting rangatahi. The evidence shows that this is the only way.

Kristina Cavit, MNZM Founder of The Kindness Institute and TAIORA, a mental health training program for whānau and those supporting youth.

Through emotional regulation, connection and compassion, our rangatahi can face life’s toughest challenges without breaking. Without this support, they are left vulnerable to their environment, making choices that can pull them deeper into trauma or crime.

But everything in this legislation is a disconnection from all of this. It disconnects rangatahi from the support of their social networks, their whānau, from the safety of their tinana (body), from the grounding of their hinengaro (mind), and from the nurturing of their wairua (spirit). This bill ignores the very things that allow rangatahi to thrive. This bill isolates, it disempowers and it puts our most vulnerable young people in danger.

Minister for Children Karen Chhour, would you let your child go to an isolated lock up where police can use violence against them? If it were your child, would you choose to punish them into submission, or help them to create a future that they can be proud of? Do we want to educate and uplift our young people like we would our own, or will we keep pretending that ‘those kids’ are not our problem?

Minister Joseph Mooney - In the oral submissions against this bill I saw you ask various leading youth organisations what they would propose instead of detaining rangatahi who may harm others. The research overwhelmingly supports de-escalation, connection and trauma-informed approaches over the use of restraint when working with young people. If you’d like a wānanga on supporting young people with emotional regulation, in redirecting, in connecting with rangatahi in distress, nau mai, haere mai, Minister – let’s kōrero.