About us
Te Kāhui Kaiwhakawā Wāhine o Aotearoa / New Zealand Association of Women Judges, was founded in 2006. Our name Te Kāhui denotes a flock and a dynamic sense of coming together of people of rank as women judges. It inspires us to work together with energy and drive, mindful of our integrity and responsibility as judges. We are grateful to our tuākana Caren Fox, and all our Māori women members for this precious gift. Our new name and tohu together capture who we are and what our association aspires to achieve: the pursuit of justice and truth through compassion and empathy.
Our tohu was created by Ngāti Porou artist Kerry Johnston, and the final design a collaboration between Kerry and graphic designer Lisa Lodge. Here is Kerry's explanation of the elements in this beautiful artwork:
I have drawn from the courage and integrity of Hine-te-iwaiwa, renowned for her expertise in women's affairs, and especially her protection of child birth and child-rearing practices. Hine-te-iwaiwa faced and overcame many challenges as a female Atua and mother..The triangle shapes represent the strength of the mountains and acknowledge the relationship between the spiritual world, natural world, and humankind. The three lines represent the values of pono — genuine / sincere, tika — true / right, aroha — compassion / empathy.
The story behind our tohu
Our connection with International Association of Women Judges (IAWJ)
Founded in 1991, IAWJ is a charitable corporation that is dedicated to the protection of human rights and in particular those of women and girls. Te Kāhui Kaiwhakawā Wāhine o Aotearoa is affiliated with the IAWJ, which has over 6000 members across some 100 jurisdictions around the world. For more information please visit: iawj.org