I. Introduction 1. Te Kāhui Tika Tangata Human Rights Commission1 (Commission) welcomes the opportunity to provide this submission to the Committee against Torture (Committee) ahead of the examination of Aotearoa New Zealand’s seventh period report under the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (Convention). 2. To acknowledge Māori as the Indigenous Peoples of Aotearoa New Zealand and tangata whenua2, we refer to New Zealand as Aotearoa New Zealand. We refer to victims/survivors of torture, violence, and abuse as “survivors”. 3. This submission is provided in response to the Committee’s List of Issues Prior to Reporting (List of Issues) provided to the Aotearoa New Zealand Government (Government) on 12 May 2017 and the State Party’s Report dated 16 March 2020. It also provides the Committee with an update on key developments since 2020. 4. This submission is structured as follows: (a) Key developments and observations on progress since the sixth periodic review (b) Aotearoa New Zealand context (c) Observations in response to some of the thematic issues raised in the List of Issues, as well as recommendations and further enquiries the Committee may wish to make to the Government 5. 1 2 The Commission coordinates Aotearoa New Zealand’s National Preventive Mechanism (NPM), which monitors the Optional Protocol to the Convention Against Torture (OPCAT). The Commission will also be providing the Committee with a submission in this capacity. The Commission is accredited as an “A status” National Human Rights Institution under the Paris Principles. Translated as “people of the land”. For more information, see https://teara.govt.nz/en/papatuanuku-the-land/page-4. 3