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Tena koutou, tena koutou.
Mayor, Bob Francis, the Mayors of South Wairarapa and Tangata whenua, Distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen.
Thank you for inviting me. I know my colleague, Steve Maharey the Minister of Social Services and Employment, would like to have been here to celebrate with you and to congratulate you on the wonderful work that you have done to make the Wairarapa a safer place for all. Unfortunately the relentless duties of a Minister mean he is unable to be here, but he has asked that I extend his apologies and his very best wishes.
It is indeed a pleasure to be asked to address this gathering in celebration of the Wonderful Wairarapa Festival and the anniversaries of the Everyday Communities programme and the Rise Above It Anti-Violence campaign as well as the signing of a unique charter.
More on these in a minute.
It goes without saying of course that the Wairarapa really is a wonderful place.
And this is one event where I don't have to worry about showing my bias because as everybody knows this is my home too.
Much is said and written about the fabulous Wairarapa - our unsurpassed scenery, our world-class wine industry, our beautifully rugged coast and wonderful beaches, our abundant horticulture and farming, our local education industry, the opportunities for a different and more laid back and carefree lifestyle our region offers, and of course our warm and wonderfully friendly people.
There is also unfortunately a darker side to our community, a side that has far too often reared its ugly head and thrust us into the national spotlight. It is one of the reasons we are here today and it is the side of us of which we are not so proud.
What we can be proud of however is the fact that as a community we are trying really hard to deal with our problems in a positive and constructive way.
Celebrating these two significant anniversaries and the signing of this charter demonstrably illustrates this.
That we are not alone as a community in the realisation that violence plays a part in the lives of some of us does not of course excuse violent behaviour and especially so when it comes to the weak and the defenseless - our children.
But what makes me especially proud and should give us all hope and optimism for a better future is that as a community we are facing up to our demons. We are challenging the notions that violence, abuse and cruelty are bigger than we are and that we can do nothing to prevent them.
Just look around you.
If anyone doubted for a minute that an entire community is working together to solve its own problems, those present here today are positive proof that the whole of the Wairarapa supports the eradication of violence and abuse against its children and families.
We have representatives from the business community here, publicly funded agencies, whether they provide services in the health arena or the social services sector is represented here today also.
Our friends the Police, who are too frequently relied on to provide answers to our social ills, are also with us and we acknowledge the fantastic job that they do in serving the Wairarapa community so well.
We have our local Iwi and other Māori organisations who are working hard in their communities to support whanau and tamariki.
Much credit for the success of these two programmes can go to the hard work of dozens of community and public agencies who have worked together with Child Youth and Family, such as Te Hauora Runanga o Wairarapa, local Safer Community Councils, Women's Refuge, Wairarapa DHB and Stopping Violence Services.
The Rise Above It campaign has forged a partnership with local Iwi and Māori organisations, which have also contributed to the development of the anti-violence charter. And of course we must thank (by far the larger number among us today) the people who make up this wonderful community of ours.
The mums and dads, the grandparents, the brothers, sisters, cousins, aunts and uncles, we are all represented here today because we support what these initiatives are trying to do for our community and because we want to be a part of the solution.
Thank you all for coming and thank you all for your support.
Can I also say that the Every Day Communities programme and the Rise Above It initiative are both excellent models for the way both central and local government can work collaboratively with communities to achieve good outcomes.
"Rise Above It" as you know is very much our own locally driven and sponsored initiative and I do want to acknowledge the tremendous effort and commitment shown by local councils and especially the effort of Bob Francis in supporting this very worthwhile campaign.
Everyday Communities is part of a wider Child Youth and Family sponsored programme being piloted in four different parts of the country - here in the Wairarapa, in Whanganui, in Whakatane where it has been fully evaluated with very positive results and in Auckland among our Pacific People.
And while the Whakatane pilot is complete with very pleasing results the other three, including our own, have started their third and final phase of activity which is due to end in June.
As with the Rise Above It campaign locally, the ultimate goal with Everyday Communities is to get New Zealanders acting to achieve safety for our children.
With family violence and abuse toward children this much we know. People move through a continuum regarding ownership of child abuse issues and their own ability to take action. By increasing that sense of ownership, communities develop their own solutions and take earlier preventive action.
As I mentioned earlier, phase three of Everyday Communities is now underway in the Wairarapa.
Of the many activities it encompasses, we've:
- run free Internet safety programmes in Greytown, Featherston and Masterton
- attracted over 700 entries in our school projects, which included colouring in for pre-schoolers and primary kids, storytelling sessions and poster competitions, and
- promoted a two-day Māori kaupapa hui on family violence.
In addition, there was an eight-week programme on local Classic Hits radio featuring interviews with health and social workers and advertising messages about family violence. The Wairarapa News also supported the campaign with articles and advertising.
We are very fortunate to have their support.
As a government with a deep commitment to children - we recently released the Care and Protection Blueprint 2003 aimed at families, communities and government working together for the safety and wellbeing of children, young people and their families - we also understand the need for the community to be involved in solving its own problems.
We also recognise the need for ongoing and strengthened support for key social service agencies like Child, Youth and Family and we have moved to overcome some of the issues that were associated with the Masterton office of CYF.
Apart from one key position, this office is now fully resourced and is also receiving additional support and practice advice from the Chef Social Worker's advisory team.
Plans are currently underway to address the backlog of local work and CYF Masterton is also strengthening its collaboration with other key agencies, especially the Police and the local District Health Board.
I commend the activity and the effort that our community is undertaking to deal with violent and abusive behaviour toward our children. We have made real progress and the public show of support here today is demonstrable proof of our commitment as a community to make things better.
Ladies and gentleman, on behalf of the government, I have great pleasure in signing this charter for Anti-Violence in the Wairarapa. I call on other local organisations to sign up to it too for the sake of our children.
Thank you very much.
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