New words for old harms? The myth of trauma-informed boot camps in the New Zealand youth justice system

In 2024, the New Zealand government reintroduced ‘Military-Style Academy Programmes’, more commonly known as youth justice boot camps. Contrary to statements by politicians, this policy is not new, despite the claim that the current iteration of boot camps will be ‘trauma-informed’. In this article, we interrogate that claim from a kaupapa Māori perspective, in light of recent findings from an evaluation of the boot camps pilot programme. We argue that New Zealand youth justice law and policy must prioritise kaupapa Māori understandings of, and responses to, trauma-informed care, and that current law and policy settings fail to do so. It must also recognise the high risk of re-traumatisation inherent within youth justice boot camps. We conclude this article with five recommendations for law and policy reform.