Bleak Stats For Pasifika In Child Poverty And As Victims Of Violent Crime

Kaya
Selby, RNZ Pacific journalist

Two
new sets of data released this week paint a dire picture of
increased difficulties facing New Zealand’s Pacific
communities.

Not only are Pasifika disproportionately
affected by violent crime, but Pasifika children are the
most affected group surging poverty.

At the same time,
Pasifika have the lowest median disposable income level out
of all ethnic groups in the country, according to new
government figures.

Child Poverty

Nearly a
fifth of Pasifika children in Aotearoa have lived in poverty
in the last year, according to new figures from Statistics
New Zealand.

Overall the levels have remained
consistent since 2019. However, nearly a third of Pasifika
children remain in material hardship, a marked increase over
the last six years.

The figures showing poverty and
material hardship rates are highest among Pasifika, follow
an upward trend since 2022.

The figures suggest more
than 32-thousand Pasifika children live in poverty. They
remain the most impoverished demographic group in Aotearoa,
followed by tamariki Māori.

Overall child poverty in
New Zealand is sitting at 12.6 percent – 6 percent lower
than the Pasifika rate.

The Minister for Child Poverty
Reduction Louise Upston said reducing material hardship for
children was a priority for the government.

Victims
of violent crime

New data from the Ministry of
Justice shows an overall 37 percent drop in violent crime
victims over the last two years – but for Pasifika, there
has been a 42 percent increase in that same
timeframe.

There were 5,000 more Pacific victims in
October 2025 compared to October 2023.

Over the last
year more than 16,000 Pasifika were victims of violent
crime, which can range from sexual assault, to non-sexual
physical assault, to robbery.

Those two years cover
most of the time that the current coalition government have
been in power.

It makes them an outlier among the rest
of Aotearoa, with the figures showing 49,000 fewer victims
overall, including fewer European and Maori
victims.

The
Justice Minister Paul Goldsmith told RNZ Pacific the
government was making progress on reducing violent
crime.

“Pacific peoples are disproportionately more
likely to be the victims of crime, and from day one our
government has worked tirelessly to return victims to the
heart of the justice system,” he said.

Domino
effect

According to the Salvation Army’s recent State
of the Nation report, there are fewer victims overall, but
those who are victimised are experiencing repeat
victimisation more often.

The Salvation Army said
Pacific social networks were disproportionately affected by
violent crime, while the criminal justice system often fails
to take into account collective identities and cultural
expectations.

At the same time, Pasifika unemployment
is running at 12 percent, driving child poverty rates.
Senior policy analyst Ana Ika said the two went hand in
hand.

“Last month the unemployment figures came out –
for Pacific it’s more than double in comparison to the rest
of the country, which creates a domino effect into other
areas, particularly when we’re talking about material
hardship in regards to access to nutritious food, doctors
and dentists, paying for utility bills,” she
said.

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