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NZCPD Guest Forum  Editorial, Otago Daily Times 28 July 06 The Crime Within

“AN ORDINARY boy from South Auckland killed Chris Currie by hurling concrete at his car” read the headline on a report of the case of Ngatai Rewiti, now facing a sentence for manslaughter at the age of 14.

There was a brief mention - almost a passing reference - during his recent trial, of a fact which ought to strike fear into the hearts of every New Zealander concerned about the future of this country, and it had nothing to do with crime, although some might regard it as a crime: two of the schoolboy witnesses at his trial struggled to read their own statements. Rewiti is himself unable to communicate properly, and of the loose group of his youthful associates who formed themselves into what they called a 'gang', just one was attending school.

These 'ordinary' Otahuhu boys, most descended from Maori or Pacific Islanders, are by no means an exception in South Auckland , where there are at least 30 youth gangs. On any day, they may be seen roaming around the streets or standing in groups smoking marijuana and listening to 'ghetto-blasters'. Their language is not the language of 'ordinary' New Zealanders, but an adoption of American ''gangsta' talk learned from their endless viewing of violent American films and listening to obscene ''raps music. They wear their identifying tattoos with exuberance, for the appeal of the gang and American underground culture is far greater to them than that of their families and their schools, let alone their ethnic identities.

These boys are members of a growing underclass in this country, disconnected in every normal sense from what it means to fulfil their lives as citizens in New Zealand society. How they got this way, or who allowed their circumstances to become so detached from the reality of the majority, is one important issue to consider. Another is how the wider community is going to deal with the consequences of permitting the existence of such alienation. Nor is it confined to South Auckland, although South Auckland is likely to have the greatest concentration.

More than 27,000 high school pupils failed to show up for last year's NCEA exams and they missed participating in a minimum of 140,000 separate tests. What does the future hold for them? Even of those who did participate, nearly one in 10 recorded a 'standard not attempted' on their final results, despite studying for the subjects; 162,955 standards were unanswered, including 34,014 maths (7.1%) unanswered and 46,381 English (11.2%).

A generation ago, when School Certificate was the principal measure of the bulk of school pupils' abilities, there were places in the community for those who found academic learning beyond them. Some turned to technical classes and, later, apprenticeships. Some simply left school and found unskilled jobs such as labouring; many took work in factories. Many others came to rely on the state's charity.

Today, the expectations of society seem to be beyond the underclass. The system of state education has and continues to fail them; technical education, where it exists, requires an intellectual input beyond their comprehension or self-discipline. There are far fewer labouring jobs, and a great number of factory jobs have been exported to Asia . The state's charity now comes with strings attached. The underclass may be growing: the 8% of the population identified this week to be in a 'severe hardship' category is an increase from 5% in 2000. Where lie - where will lie - its allegiances?

Ngatai Rewiti's friends, when interviewed, talked only of  'smashing heaps of people'; some have already served time in jail, and one said he thought eventually all of them would. Crime is their career of choice. Those close to the murdered Kahui twins knew enough about their rights not to talk to the police, as did Rewiti, and claimed their 'culture' permitted them to stonewall the police investigation into the identities of the killer or killers. There are common factors in these and the many other recent similar instances, whether they be boys mugging a 95-year-old going about her business, or 9 and 11-year-old marijuana smokers bent on arson: hatred, envy, rage, self-loathing, poverty, ignorance, dehumanisation, nihilistic parenting, and the seeds of racial confrontation.

What has happened - is happening - to what was once described as 'our attractive pastoral and egalitarian society'?

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