Category: Public Media

Source: Radio New Zealand

A priest admitted sexual abuse to leaders of his religious order nearly 20 years before he would be convicted of sexually abusing four boys, RNZ can reveal.

However, at the time in 2007, he was unable to identify the anonymous complainant and instead of notifying police, the order sent him to Australia for a six-month programme that provided “professional risk assessment and therapy” for people accused of sexual abuse.

RNZ earlier revealed Fr Rowan Donoghue had admitted six charges including indecent assault on a boy aged 12-16, indecent assault on a boy 16 and over and sexual violation by unlawful sexual connection.

The offending related to four boys who were boarding at St Bede’s College in Christchurch between 1996 and 2000.

RNZ also revealed that the Society of Mary was made aware of allegations against the priest nearly 20 years ago. The religious order was unable to verify the allegations from the anonymous complainant, but removed Donoghue from public ministry and enacted a “safety plan”.

Do you know more? Email sam.sherwood@rnz.co.nz

In response to further questions by RNZ a Society of Mary spokesperson said a complaint alleging offending by Fr Donoghue was received by the priest via an anonymous Hotmail account in October 2007.

“He advised Society of Mary administration and in a conversation with leaders of the Society of Mary, Donoghue admitted that he was guilty of abuse but could not identify the complainant.

“He was removed from his ministry as a priest immediately. This permanent removal from ministry and subsequent ongoing monitoring has continued to the present day.”

The spokesperson said the society reached out to the anonymous emailer “encouraging him to identify himself” and make a complaint to the police so the matter might be properly investigated, and so that he might receive appropriate support.

“Those attempts to connect with and support the victim, made over many months, were unsuccessful and so no complaint could be made by the Society to the police.

“Donoghue was sent for a six-month programme to Encompass, an institute in Australia that provided professional risk assessment and therapy for those accused of sexual abuse.”

Detective Senior Sergeant Karen Simmons told RNZ police were unable to comment on processes of other organisations and their decision making and whether they decide to call the police but that police encouraged people to do so if they have information they believe could be relevant to any investigation or suspected offending.

In response to earlier questions from RNZ, a Teaching Council spokesperson said in general, the council did not comment on complaints or mandatory reports to the council.

“However, given the level of public interest, we can confirm that we have been working closely with New Zealand Police since early 2025 in support of their investigation into offending by Mr Donoghue.

“The legal requirement for mandatory reporting to the New Zealand Teachers Council (now the Teaching Council) relating to the dismissal, resignation under investigation, serious misconduct, competence concerns, or specified convictions of teachers was first inserted into the Education Act 1989 by the Education Standards Act 2001 to protect the safety of children and young people in our education system.”

Now the criminal process had concluded, the council’s professional disciplinary process would resume.

“This process will include consideration of whether obligations have been met to report conduct or competence concerns to the council that were known at the time, and appropriate action depending on the findings.”

Asked who the disciplinary process would look at, the spokesperson said the council would “into the actions of everyone involved“.

“We are committed to ensuring the safety of children and young people and the quality of teaching in our education system, and we encourage anyone who has concerns about the conduct or competence of a formally registered teacher to reach out to us.”

St Bede’s College rector Jon McDowall earlier told RNZ the details outlined through the court process were “deeply disturbing”.

“As rector, it makes me feel sick to think that young people entrusted to an adult’s care were abused in this way. I am deeply sorry that this happened to them, and my thoughts are with the victims and survivors who continue to live with the impact of that harm.”

McDowall said the school had worked openly with police throughout the process.

“We will continue to cooperate fully with the authorities should any further information come to light.

“Abuse has no place at St Bede’s – past, present, or future. The College has an established policy in place to respond and support victims of historical abuse, alongside safeguarding policies and practices to protect the wellbeing and safety of students today. Our focus remains on providing a safe and supportive environment for all members of our community.”

McDowall extended an open invitation for victims in the case, and others who may have been impacted, or anyone with concerns to contact him directly.

In early 2023, police were contacted about the allegations of sexual abuse by Donoghue in relation to his time at St Bede’s College.

St Patrick’s Silverstream rector Rob Ferreira told RNZ the school had not been made aware of any allegations of abuse in care while Fr Donoghue worked at the school between 1982 to 1992.

“We have not had any inquiries from the police either.

“We operate according to clearly set out guidelines and best practice and you should note that our primary concern is the wellbeing of our students. Given that – our protection of the privacy and any other rights of survivors of abuse and other individuals would be paramount.”

He said the school had informed the community that Donoghue’s name suppression had lifted.

St Patrick’s College Wellington rector Mike Savali confirmed to RNZ that Donoghue was on the college staff from 2003 to 2007.

Where to get help:

• If it is an emergency and you feel like you or someone else is at risk, call 111.
• If you’ve ever experienced sexual assault or abuse and need to talk to someone call the confidential crisis helpline Safe to Talk on 0800 044 334 or text 4334. (available 24/7)
• Male Survivors Aotearoa offers a range of confidential support at centres across New Zealand – find your closest one here.
• Men and Trauma New Zealand: 0800 636 263
• Alternatively contact your local police station

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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand

Source: Radio New Zealand

The cancellation of water-based activities at this year’s Island Bay Festival didn’t put too much of a dampener on the day.

Thousands of people congregated at the festival which had to cancel one of its headline events, the Blessing of the Boats, earlier this week.

The festival said the decision was made in line with public health advice after thousands of litres of untreated sewage spilled into the sea around the southern coast after the long outfall pipe backed up at the Moa Point Wastewater Plant.

A rāhui remains in effect from Ōwhiro Bay to Breaker Bay, and advice to the public continues to be to stay off south coast beaches, not to collect or eat shellfish from the affected coastal waters, avoid the area around Tarakena Bay altogether, and avoid contact with sea water or spray.

Down at the festival Rosie said they came to the festival every year and made time for the Blessing of the Boats and the Tangata Manu Birdman Beach Party.

The Beach Party had avoided cancellation but had been relocated to Shorland Park and moved to Friday 13 February.

She said it was a shame the events had been affected by the wastewater discharge.

“It doesn’t feel like the normal Island Bay festival.”

Sam said she was very disappointed Blessing of the Boats had been cancelled. She said it was what many people came to the festival for.

“It’s a big Catholic community so I think it’s really important for them to see that and obviously the Italian side.”

Kate said the real disappointment was Wellington’s infrastructure.

“This is not the first time we’ve had sewerage going into the sea,” she said. “We’ve just got to stop making these mistakes.”

She had brought her stepson and his partner who were visiting from overseas to support the local event and they had enjoyed the variety of street food available.

Leanne said the kids were “bummed” they couldn’t go swimming and the sewage situation needed to get sorted.

Anika hoped not being able to go in the ocean wouldn’t deter people from coming to the festival, but she said what was going on in the ocean was really sad.

“I’ve talked to quite a few people who are really grieving what this means for the creatures that live here for the marine life, for the diversity that we have, that has taken so long to protect,” she said.

For many the water events however weren’t why they came to the festival.

“We live locally, so it’s nice to come down and support and come check it out,” said Dave.

William said he and his family lived just up the street and came down to the festival for something to do.

He said with a young baby they wouldn’t have gone to the beach anyway.

Lin from Christchurch and Jan from Melbourne saw the festival advertised and decided to come along.

The pair had come for a pickleball tournament, which they ended up pulling out of due to injuries.

Lin said the pair had seen some signs about the wastewater, but it hadn’t impacted their trip at all.

“We’ve just been having an amazing time because Wellington weather’s been great and we’ve just been doing a lot of sightseeing,” said Jan.

Newest water samples show wastewater had not reached inner harbour

Wellington Water says the latest results show there is no indication that untreated wastewater has reached the inner harbour.

The latest water quality tests taken on Friday show wastewater is still discharging into the ocean and people should stay off south coast beaches.

But it shows there is no sign the polluted wastewater has reached Eastbourne, Petone the CBD or Kilbirnie.

Some areas where there had been higher readings also looked to be lower than in previous days.

Wellington Water chair Nick Leggett today’s results were positive news, but for now the advice is still to stay out of the water.

“What we will be doing is building up a pattern and a trend from the testing in the days ahead,” he said

“By the end of the week we might be in a better position to sort of say with some confidence and provide some clarity, whether or not that can change.”

Leggett said the clean up of the Moa Point plant would also continue over the next week.

“Our hope is that by this time next week, we will have a much cleaner plant which will allow the assessments to start taking place so we can understand what it’s going to take to rehabilitate the plant and get it back operating.”

People get in touch with marine life at the Bait House

While people weren’t able to dip a toe in the sea water at Island Bay, also open during the festival was the Marine Education Centre Bait House.

Visitors were told as they entered that the facility had stopped its seawater intake the night before the wastewater spillage due to the predicted heavy rain.

“All our marine life is healthy and happy,” the Marine Education Centre said on its Facebook page earlier this week.

“We dodged a bullet. Many years of operating a tiny aquarium on the South Coast and being in tune with nature as much as possible paid off.”

One of the biggest attractions of the bait house is its touch pool where people could pick up starfish and other critters, and while people were given the option to ditch the hands-on experience if they were concerned about the water, most were still quick to dive in despite the water issues nearby.

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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand

Source: Radio New Zealand

A clinician says dengue fever vaccines should be made available in New Zealand as the Cook Islands reports a death from their current outbreak – an outbreak that has seen cases of the disease in Aotearoa grow too.

The country’s health ministry said an elderly patient with underlying conditions had arrived to hospital late in the disease’s progression, and died on 2 February.

Authorities have now announced Operation Namu-26 to raise awareness and promote prevention, including reminding tourists to stay safe.

Dengue is a virus passed between people by mosquitos, and Operation Namu-26 will include an increase in insecticide spraying work on the affected islands, as well as a nation-wide clean up to reduce places where water could pool and mosquito eggs could be.

The Cook Islands declared a dengue outbreak in May 2025, and more than 500 cases have been recorded there since.

In New Zealand, 86 people had been reported to have contracted dengue, with 75 of those cases connected to travel to the Cook Islands.

There had been “a significant increase in dengue cases on Rarotonga at the end of December 2025, and again at the end of January 2026”, the Cook Islands health ministry said. Cases had also been found on the islands of Aitutaki, Atiu, Mauke and Mangaia.

Clinician calls for travellers to take precautions, and vaccine to be made available in New Zealand

A vaccine against dengue is essential for New Zealanders to avoid potentially life-threatening bouts of the disease, and should also be made available here too, Auckland doctor Marc Shaw told RNZ.

There is currently no vaccine against dengue currently available in New Zealand, Health New Zealand said.

Shaw is the founder and medical director of Worldwise Travellers Health, and said a dengue vaccine is available in Australia, and has been trailed and tested across most of the world, including in Europe, the US, and South America.

There was strong demand for it in New Zealand, but it needs to be registered by Medsafe in order to be offered here, he said.

Children and older people are more susceptible to dengue fever, Shaw said. And while a first infection is usually not too serious for a healthy adult, the disease is also dangerous for anyone who catches it a second time.

Everyone headed to the Pacific should use the insect repellent permethrin, including spraying their clothes with it, and should wear light coloured clothing, Shaw said.

“The second attack can be a lot more sinister, in that it can cause a lot more potential for death or more serious disease requiring hospitalisation.

“So to this end, it is very important, that if people have had dengue fever in the past, that they take extra precautions for prevention of the disease on the second, third or fourth attack.”

Most types of mosquito are more active at dawn and dusk, but the mosquito species that transmits dengue is active for many hours during the day. It can also transmit other harmful viruses, including Zika and Chikungunya.

“It’s a daytime biting mosquito, and because of that, mosquito repellant is going to be essential for the prevention of diseases at that time,” Shaw said.

“I don’t recommend that people need to necessarily stop going to these wonderful areas that we have on our back doorstep, but to take good precautions – just to be aware of having some good mosquito repellant.

“I and my group are trying to make [a vaccine against dengue] more readily available, because we have a lot of demand for it – and it is this demand I think which is particularly significant at the moment, where the potential of the disease becomes a lot more likely given that people going into a dengue-ridden area can be attacked very easily by mosquito bites.”

Cook Islands tourism spots to take prevention measures

Tourist companies would be providing dengue prevention items to visitors and spraying on their properties following the ministry’s guidelines, the Cook Islands ministry of health said.

Anyone experiencing flu-like symptoms, headache, joint or muscle pain, or rash should “seek urgent medical attention immediately …so that timely care can be provided”.

New Zealand clinician and University of Auckland lecturer Dr Maryann Heather recently told RNZ that one in four people infected with dengue get sick.

Symptoms include headaches, pain behind the eyes, abdominal pain, nausea, vomiting, muscle pain, joint pain, skin rash, lethargy, tiredness, and high fever, and can be severe. The disease can be more dangerous for young children and elderly people.

“If you aren’t improving or concerned, you should seek medical attention, especially if you think you have dengue fever after returning from the islands,” Heather said.

“It’s crucial to educate and warn people travelling back to the islands so they are aware that dengue fever is present, especially since it is seasonal.”

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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand

Source: Radio New Zealand

Taupō firefighters are responding to a large fire at Taupo Nui-a-Tia Tia College.

Fire and Emergency NZ said it was called to the already large fire about 2:10pm on Sunday.

Nearby residents were advised to close their doors and windows.

Photos and videos posted on social media showed an enormous plume of black smoke visible from across the lake.

A deluge of posts to an online community page said they could see flames or smoke coming from the school, on Sunday afternoon, while photos showed a large black plume of smoke rising from the town.

“N block fully ablazed ash is coming down all over Motutahae Street,” one person said.

“A significant amount of the school has already burned down,” another said.

Local MP Louise Upston said in a Facebook post the news was “devastating”.

The school is on Spa Road, at the north east end of the town.

Firefighting crews from the Lake Taupō, Taupo, Kinloch, Rotorua, Tokoroa, Greerton, Tauranga and Kaingaroa stations were responding.

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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand