***Distressing content warning***

At the time of the hearing Mr X was 61 years old and is a Samoan man who experienced sexual, physical and psychological abuse in care. He suffered physical and sexual abuse from family members and was placed in care as a result of running away from home to escape this. He was placed in Ōwairaka, Hokio, Kohitere and Invercargill Borstal and experienced abuse in all these settings, including extensive periods locked in solitary confinement. Mr X placed particular emphasis on the racial discrimination he suffered in these settings because of his Pacific heritage, as well as the lack of education despite being a high achieving student. He explained the long term impacts of the abuse, which included the loss of his cultural identity, a loss of the Samoan language, and a lack of belonging in early adulthood.