The report into the mosque attacks basically told those affected to fend for themselves – the government must support us

In New Zealand, strong women leaders are regularly referred to as wāhine toa. This is not a term used lightly, but rather a title given to women who show exceptional leadership and continue to support those around them even in the face of enormous difficulties. Some might refer to New Zealand’s prime minister, Jacinda Ardern, as a wāhine toa, but it can be also used for women within general society who display consistent courage and strength.

In the 15 March 2019 Christchurch terrorist attack, 51 people (47 men and four women) died in two mosques. As fate would have it, the majority of those who were lost were male … and the majority of those left to shoulder the impact, to pick up the pieces and to take charge were female – wives, mothers, daughters, sisters. Leading a family is a challenge on a regular day, but under such circumstances, after such a violent, destructive act, it has unsurprisingly been daunting.

New Zealand security forces should have focused more on threat of rightwing terrorism, royal commission told

New Zealand’s Islamic community has told the Christchurch massacre inquiry that it knew it was “vulnerable” to a terror attack, and that security forces had wrongly focused on terrorism committed by Muslim extremists.

“We asked for help. We knew we were vulnerable to such an attack. We did not know who, when, what, where or how. But we knew,” the Federation of the Islamic Associations of New Zealand said in a submission made public on Monday.