Law won't be changed for mosque shooting witnesses to get ACC - Andrew Little

Nearly two years on from the Christchurch mosque attacks witnesses to the massacre say they feel forgotten.

• This story was first published by RNZ

The government has just revealed its next steps in responding to the Royal Commission into the March 15 shootings in which 51 people were killed and 40 injured.

Witness Abdul Aziz said he was traumatised from what he saw, and wanted to be helped as a victim.

"We are struggling because ... everything is hitting us right now. I mean, after the incident it takes time ... trauma is hitting us now. The symptoms, we can feel them now. We are getting short tempers, headaches, nightmares. All these things are starting now.

"We got help from a psychologist and I went a couple of times but the problem for me was it didn't work that good because ... I was getting worse than getting better ... that's why I decided to not go ahead anymore.

"The government, I would like them to recognise us as [victims] as well."

While witnesses to the attack are excluded from receiving ACC assistance for their trauma, the royal commission report recommended that the government should direct the ACC to support them.

Lead coordination minister for the government's response to the royal commission Andrew Little told Morning Report changes had not been made to ACC to provide support for witnesses - "and we don't intend to at this point".

"In terms of other support given to all the victims, the families of those who were killed, those who were injured and those who were witnesses, there is a variety of support that has been in place. One of the things that we have undertaken to do is set up what is called the Collective Impact Board. That is a group from the muslim community. They will come together to oversee all of the government agencies who are there to support the community."

Asked specifically about the support for witnesses, and why a recommendation from the royal commission on that had not been implemented, Little said: "What became apparent ... was that the support that was available in the immediate aftermath of the terrorist attack had dissipated throughout last year, largely because of Covid.

"But we are seeking to reinstate that, and the purpose of the Collective Impact Board is precisely to make sure those supports ... are available for an ongoing period of time."

"The thing about ACC is the government does not get to instruct the ACC to do whatever it likes, the ACC is subject to its statute and its legal framework. If we want to change the law then there's a debate about that."

But he said it was correct that witnesses did not qualify for ACC.

"Witnesses don't easily fall into the regime that ACC is there to deal with which is physical injury by accident."

The government would not be changing that, Little said.

"We don't have the power to instruct ACC to do something that is not within their legal mandate. We will continue to provide support ... if we change the law, we change the law for everyone for all time ... we have not undertaken to change the law."

But there had been psychosocial support for those who had been witnesses, he said. The Collective Impact Board would ensure that continued to be available.