The Human Rights Commission has continued its work of protecting and promoting human rights and harmonious relations in New Zealand. This progress was achieved through effective delivery of our core work programmes and projects across four human rights areas: Inclusive and Just Society; Harmonious Relations; Business and Human Rights; and Human Rights Mandate. Delivering outcomes for New Zealanders The work of the Commissioners and our dedicated staff has seen progress in advancing the human rights of New Zealanders. A significant piece of work during the past year was the strong advocacy by the Commission and other parties for an independent inquiry into the abuse of people held in state care. The Royal Commission of Inquiry into Historical Abuse in State Care, announced by the Government in February, reflected the strong case made by the Commission and the other groups working on this issue. The Commission’s Give Nothing to Racism campaign video, featuring 2016 New Zealander of the Year Taika Waititi, went viral internationally and helped reset the discussion of our attitudes to race within New Zealand. The campaign was the most visible component of our work supporting a more diverse and inclusive society for international students, new migrants and refugees. The Commission continued to consult with, and advocate for, the rights of women, particularly in the areas of pay parity and gender equality in the workforce and ending gender-based violence. The Commission launched its Tracking Equality at Work webtool in June, which shows that women, particularly young Mäori and Pasifika women and women with disabilities, have higher rates of unemployment and under-employment and lower rates of labour-force participation. There has been a sharp decline in women in senior private sector management roles, and New Zealand lags behind many other countries in this area. To improve outcomes for disabled New Zealanders, the Commission worked with inclusive education stakeholders to ensure the voices of people with disabilities were heard at the Government’s education summits in May and ongoing education reforms. A significant amount of work has gone into starting to research New Zealanders’ attitudes about disability and to collecting disability data. The Commission is an active partner with Statistics New Zealand and the Office of Disability Issues in the development of a measurement framework to better track improvements for disabled people. The Proud to be Me campaign in November celebrated the lives of New Zealanders with disabilities and opened up discussion about disability, 6 Human Rights Commission

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