crisis also significantly impacts the ability of women and children to flee family violence,63 and women on remand to be released into the community.64 Recommendations: (a) Provide disaggregated data on the gaps in the realisation of the right to adequate housing in New Zealand. (b) What steps has the Government taken to ensure the availability of adequate and affordable housing for wāhine Māori and girls. (c) What steps has the Government taken to increase the availability of adequate and affordable housing for all segments of society, including to ensure equitable housing for women and girls who are Pacific and other ethnic groups, disabled, single mothers, elderly, living in poverty and fleeing violence, including rural women. (d) What steps has the Government taken to adopt an independent accountability mechanism for the housing system. Non-discrimination (Article 2) Treatment of women in prisons 27. The Department of Corrections adopted a new women’s strategy for 2021 – 2025, which recognises the need for trauma, gendered and culturally-informed practice.65 However, ethnic disparities at all levels of the criminal justice system continue. While wāhine Māori make up approximately 8.6% of Aotearoa’s total population,66 they make up over 60% of the female prison population.67 The Waitangi Tribunal is currently undertaking an inquiry into discrimination, institutional racism and bias at all levels of the justice system.68 28. Recent reports on the treatment of prisoners in Aotearoa highlight that segregation69 was applied to women 73% more often than to men, and that it affected predominantly wāhine Māori.70 Female prisoners were also subjected to punitive practices, including the use of pepper spray, often in response to minor incidents and to inhumane and degrading practices such as strip searches. There has been a significant fall in the number of women in our prisons in recent years, from 809 in March 2019 to 426 63 64 65 66 67 68 69 70 Amy Ridout ‘’This is the first time I have had the strength to leave, and I can’t’ Stuff (26 March 2022) https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/127862775/this-is-the-first-time-i-have-had-the-strength-to-leave-and-i-cant. Matthew Scott “Projected growth of remand prison population ‘alarming’’’ Newsroom (4 April 2022) https://www.newsroom.co.nz/projected-growth-of-remand-prison-population-alarming. Ara Poutama | Department of Corrections “Wāhine – E rere ana ki te pae hou – Women rising above a new horizon” (2021 – 2025) https://www.corrections.govt.nz/__data/assets/pdf_file/0004/44644/Corrections_Wahine__E_rere_ana_ki_te_pae_hou_2021_-_2025.pdf. Stats NZ “Population” (as at December 2021) https://www.stats.govt.nz/topics/population; Stats NZ “Māori population estimates: Mean year ended 31 December 2021” (May 2022) https://www.stats.govt.nz/information-releases/maori-population-estimates-mean-year-ended-31december-2021. Stats NZ “Annual Remand Prisoner Population for the Latest Calendar Years” and “Annual Sentenced Prisoner Population for the Latest Calendar Years” (as at December 2021) at https://www.stats.govt.nz/information-releases/prison-sentence-remand-and-post-prison-community-sentence-andcompleted-community-work-offender-population-statistics-2021-calendar-year-nz-stat-tables. Ministry of Justice “Justice System Kaupapa Inquiry” at https://www.justice.govt.nz/justice-sector-policy/justice-systemkaupapa-inquiry/. Solitary confinement. Dr Sharon Shalev “First, Do No Harm: segregation, restraint and pepper spray use in women’s prisons in New Zealand” (November 2021), at 10 - 11. 12