A new report has scrutinised New Zealand’s child poverty and gender equality and revealed the country’s slipping performance in terms of human rights. The country’s international image as a human rights leader is not supported by what’s happening at home.

The report Fault Lines: Human Rights in New Zealand evaluated the six international agreements ratified by the country. The three-year study was written by three authors namely Professor Judy McGregor from the Auckland University of Technology, Professor Margaret Wilson from the University of Waikato and human rights lawyer Sylvia Bell, reports New Zealand Herald.

McGregor said the study revealed how New Zealand was better at talking about human rights than keeping its international obligations. “For example, we keep telling the United Nations we were the first to grant women the vote, but we still don’t have equal pay for women or pay equity for carers,” explained McGregor. She noted that the country was unable to "walk the talk" when it comes to human rights.

The report author also cited New Zealand’s lack of paid parental leave and “unacceptable” levels of violence against women. The report outlined 13 recommendations for the government to implement change. This includes the creation of a new parliamentary select committee to tackle human rights issues and a repeal of legislation that do not comply with human rights treaties.

New Zealand has supported six major treaties covering human rights including racial discrimination and the rights of women, children and people with disabilities. The report has found that ratifying such treaties triggered positive change.

However, the report said it found signs of regression and was concerned of changes to the welfare system that undermined the standard of living for some children. Human rights lawyer Michael Bott remarked that the current and previous New Zealand governments had little interest in strictly upholding human rights within the laws. He also claimed that most MPs did not know much about the country’s international obligations.

In response to the report, Justice Minister Amy Adams issued a statement and said the authors had the right to express their own views on the matter. She reiterated that New Zealand has a strong record on the issue of human rights. Adams said the country has a low level of corruption and a history of a transparent government.

“I disagree that there needs to be an overhaul of human rights framework,” said the justice minister. She added that New Zealanders should be proud of the country’s efforts in promoting human rights. Stuff reports that Adams acknowledged that there is always room for improvement.

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