Police say they have already made "significant" changes to address the many issues raised in an independent report into the so-called Urewera terror raids.
But Police Commissioner Peter Marshall falls short of apologising for the 2007 raids, saying that although he regrets the impact on the community, the police investigation has been vindicated by the report.
The report into Operation 8, released today by the Independent Police Conduct Authority, lists a litany of failings in the 2007 raid and its aftermath.
Among the findings were that police roadblocks at Ruatoki and Taneatua were "unlawful, unreasonable and unjustified", and searching all vehicles instead of just ones suspected of transporting weapons was also unjustified.
The Green Party believes the report shows a need for an urgent and dramatic overhaul of police culture.
However, Mr Marshall says since the raid, police have made changes to operational policies and practices, including the passing of the Search and Surveillance Act 2012.
The change clarified the way police carry out surveillance, enter places and vehicles, conduct vehicle stops and search and secure people, places and vehicles.
Mr Marshall says the new law will "diminish the likelihood of a similar situation arising again".
He is however pleased the report confirmed the Operation 8 investigation was a "reasonable and necessary" response to the suspected criminal activity being undertaken.
"While the report is critical of some police actions, it also definitively lays to rest some myths that have become accepted as fact," he says.
For example, the report debunked the belief armed police searched a bus full of kohanga reo children.
"The context is important here," he says. "This was an operation involving more than 300 police staff nationwide. It followed an almost two-year investigation into a group of people involved in military style training camps using Molotov cocktails, semi-automatic rifles, threats to kill people and destroy property. The authority says the threat was 'real and potentially serious' and the police response involved a 'huge logistical challenge'."
The execution of the 41 search warrants netted 26 firearms, 17 of which were in Ruatoki, Mr Marshall says.
He apologised "for those instances where police failed to meet expected standards when carrying out the Ruatoki and Taneatua roadblocks and five of the 41 property searches".
Police would now work through the report's recommendations, which included re-engaging with Tuhoe, keeping a decision log during the planning of major operations and requiring police to undertake a community impact assessment.
Mr Marshall maintains the police "did the right thing" in carrying out the investigation, arrests and prosecution. However, he regrets the impact it had on residents.
Greens' police spokesman Dave Clendon says an apology from police was not enough and "real cultural change is needed".
"Innocent people were illegally detained and searched by police during the raid. The rights of New Zealanders going about their daily business were abused. We are talking about a sleepy New Zealand town here not Belfast at the height of the IRA bombings."
"I have serious concerns that racial discrimination played a part in this raid. Would the police have raided Remuera in Auckland, or Khandallah in Wellington in the same way? Little children left home alone while carers were dragged away by masked men?"
Mr Clendon says the Tuhoe people deserve to know why police "thought it was okay to descend like masked ninjas" on a quiet little Maori community.
He says while some of the problems with the raid have been addressed, "the fundamental thinking that made police think this raid was okay needs to be changed".
Mr Clendon says police need to rebuild their relationship with the community and Maori by using iwi liaison officers.
3 News
source: newshub archive
