People Against Prisons Aotearoa

Abolitionist Demand 7: Defund the New Zealand Police.

This is a part of No Pride in Prisons’ Abolitionist demands. These demands were originally published as a book. To see a pdf of the book, click here. To buy a copy, please email info@noprideinprisons.org.nz

The police as an institution is inherently violent. It arbitrarily enforces laws at the expense of certain populations, particularly poor and indigenous people.^[1] This is demonstrated by the disproportionate number of Māori coming into contact with police,^[2]being arrested,^[3]having force used against them,^[4]being tasered,^[5] and being killed by police.^[6] The answer to reducing and ultimately eradicating structural racism perpetuated by the New Zealand Police will not come through reforming the Police as an institution. It requires radical social change.

Recognising that this structural shift and the abolition of the Police will require a revolution in social and economic conditions, in the intermediate term, No Pride in Prisons calls for the defunding of the New Zealand Police.^[7] Defunding the New Zealand Police would lead to a reduction in the number of police officers and a reduced possibility for criminalised populations to come into contact with police.^[8] In the 2016/17 budget, the New Zealand Police was allocated nearly $1.7 billion in funding.^[9] By defunding the New Zealand Police, these funds may be reallocated to practices and institutions that address the underlying structural causes of social inequality including education, healthcare, social welfare services, and housing.

^[1] Karen Dolan with Jodi L. Carr, The Poor Get Prison: The Alarming Spread of the Criminalization of Poverty, (Washington: Institute for Policy Studies, 2015).

^[2] Department of Corrections, Over-representation of Māori in the Criminal Justice System: An Exploratory Report, (Wellington: Department of Corrections, 2007).

^[3] Ibid.

^[4] New Zealand Police, NZ Police Annual Tactical Options Research Report #3, (Wellington: New Zealand Police, 2014).

^[5] Ibid.

^[6] Fightback, “Policing the Colonial Project of Aotearoa New Zealand (Voices of Women and Gender Minorities),” Fightback, 15 September 2015. https://fightback.org.nz/2015/09/15/policing-the-colonial-project-of-aotearoa-new-zealand-voices-of-women-and-gender-minorities/.

^[7] Angela Davis, Are Prisons Obsolete? (New York: Seven Stories Press), 107.

^[8] Stuart Nash, “Police Commissioner Doesn’t Get Force Needs,” Labour. 10 February 2016. http://www.labour.org.nz/police_commissioner_doesn_t_get_force_needs.

^[9] New Zealand Treasury, The Estimates of Appropriations 2016/17 – Justice Sector, (Wellington, New Zealand Treasury, 2016), 120.