Emotions Run High as NZ Government Apologises to Those Harmed in State Care

‘I make this apology to all survivors on behalf of my own and previous governments,’ the prime minister said.

New Zealand Prime Minister Christopher Luxon (C) and Education Minister Erica Stanford (L) look on during a school assembly at Manurewa Intermediate School in Auckland, New Zealand, on Dec. 1, 2023. Phil Walter/Getty Images

With today scheduled as the time for the New Zealand government to formally apologise to survivors of abuse in state care, emotions ran high.

As soon as Prime Minister Christopher Luxon rose to speak in Parliament, a person in the public gallery began shouting, leading Speaker Gerry Brownlee to order guards to remove him.