After years of waiting, survivors of abuse in state and faith-based care will finally get to hear the report from the Royal Commission this afternoon.
The inquiry was established in 2018, to probe abuse and neglect in state and faith-based care, between 1950 and 1999.
In 2020, the commission released findings estimating up to a quarter of a million children, young people and adults were abused, with 81% being Māori.
An interim report made 95 recommendations on redress and a proposal for that is sitting with the Government but survivors have been told to wait for the final report before it is actioned.
As hearings continued in 2022, it was found a third of children placed in state care ended up serving prison sentences.
When submissions closed for survivor registrations last March, more than 4000 had signed up, and the commission extended its deadline; its chairperson describing a scale of abuse "beyond what anyone had imagined".
Human rights lawyer Sonja Cooper told Breakfast the inquiry findings were the culmination of a lot of information which had been collected over the last five years, which had been covered up for decades.
Cooper said she was mostly looking forward to the findings which would provide a blueprint to moving forward and helping those who were still in care or had been abused in care.
Most faith-based organisations have stepped up and taken on board what has been said during the enquiry, and their processes have changed and become more trauma informed, she said.
However, Cooper added she couldn’t say the same for Catholic organisations and they appeared to have a “long way to go”.
She said the state has failed and continued to fail those needing care, and billions of dollars would be needed for compensation from the state, along with ongoing support.
"Yes, there’s [the matter of] money but you also need wrap-around services which actually people should probably have for the rest of their lives to ensure they have a decent standard of living."
Cooper said survivors would need compensation and support to cover the loss they have suffered throughout their lives.
"If you look at the impact of the abuse on their education, their wellbeing, their ability to live a decent life... all of that is impacted and the statistics show the actuarial research shows it's about $800,000 or $900,000 per survivor."
Vulnerable adults were also needing to be looked after, Cooper said, as they had spent much of their lives being locked up and suffering abuse.
Cooper challenged both major political parties to achieve a cross party approach to resolve the findings and recommendations.
Foinally, she called on politicians to "implement" the report and "do what it says".
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