This study was commissioned by the Chief Victims Advisor to provide an analysis of current, past, and potential kaupapa Māori (Māori strategy, theme, philosophy, approach, topic, institution, agenda, or principles) procedures for delivering
alternative resolution options for Māori who are victims of crime. Māori are currently overrepresented as victims and as offenders. The Chief Victims Advisor 2019 report Te Tangi o te Manawanui: Recommendations for Reform, as part of
the Hāpaitia te Oranga Tangata reform programme also highlighted a critical need for services that can better accommodate the needs of Māori who are victims of
crime. This includes more targeted investment in promising kaupapa Māori restorative and alternative resolution pathways to better understand and improve existing alternative pathways for Māori.

Kaupapa Māori-based responses and approaches have been recognised to fill the present gap in culturally appropriate support systems and alternatives for Māori.
Research conducted over the last twenty years has also demonstrated "the necessity and efficacy" of kaupapa Māori approaches (Were et al., 2019) to areas such as whānau (family) and intimate-partner violence, and the significant role
kaupapa and tikanga (rule, plan, method, custom, habit, anything normal or usual, reason, meaning, authority, control, correct or right, Māori customary values and practices) informed approaches and initiatives can play in reducing
over-representation of Māori as victims.

As iterated throughout this report, kaupapa Māori is a way of doing and thinking that is based on Māori values, beliefs, and traditions. A kaupapa Māori approach to service delivery is also strength-based, holistic, whānau-centred, and aspirational. This means that solutions are based on and tailored to the unique needs of the individual and their whānau, and seeks to build on their inherent individual and collective strengths and mana (authority, power, prestige). In terms
of the victim, a kaupapa Māori approach ensures that they are empowered to make decisions about their own healing and wellbeing, in a way that is 'victim-led'. Kaupapa Māori services also place a strong emphasis on the importance of
community and whānau support in the healing process. They acknowledge the impact that crime has not only on the individual, but also on their wider family/whānau, hapū (subtribe), iwi (tribe), and indeed the entire community. This
ensures that solutions are embedded in a community context and are more likely to contribute to positive long-term and sustainable intergenerational change.

This research explores relevant Indigenous, and where appropriate, non-Indigenous peer-reviewed research, evaluations, grey literature and government publications from Aotearoa and international jurisdictions on alternative resolution pathways. This research also provides several examples of community initiatives delivering kaupapa and tikanga Māori based services and supports for Māori
victims. (From the Executive summary). See also the related report, "Victim-led alternative resoulution pathways (#8360). Record #8361