Source: Radio New Zealand
Moeaia Tuai is on trial accused of controlling two young people, keeping their passports and pay, sexual violation and assault. RNZ / Gill Bonnett
The jury in an Auckland slavery trial has been told they have to decide whether a man treated two young people as if they were his property.
Moeaia Tuai, 63, has pleaded not guilty to two charges of dealing in slaves, two rapes and assaults, and other sexual offences.
Justice Wilkinson-Smith, summing up the case, said the prosecution say Mr Tuai’s actions were the ‘very definition of slavery’, in exercising rights of ownership over the complainants.
“It can include conduct such as restricting freedom of movement – where a person can go, restricting freedom of association – who they can spend time with, restricting freedom of communication – who they can contact and talk to, using actual or threatened violence for breach of rules, retaining income and denying access to money, threatening consequences such as deportation to ensure compliance, restricting access to education to maintain control.
“All of these things can be used to control a person in a way that is tantamount to possession.”
The jury had to decide whether that happened, she said.
She said most prosecutions in New Zealand courts could only be for offending which happened here.
“Slavery is different. It captures alleged offending both in and out of New Zealand. So, the charge of slavery relating to both [complainants] covers the time period and the events that are alleged to have occurred in Australia as well as in New Zealand.”
The Crown alleges Tuai kept their passports, bank cards and wages, forcing one to take out a loan, and threatening both with deportation if they spoke out.
Tuai’s lawyer Tua Saseve told the jury at the High Court at Auckland that the defendant did not take unreasonable or excessive expenses from the young people’s wages, and safeguarded their bank cards and passports.
He was also not a ‘puppetmaster’ who forced the female complainant to make a previous, false allegation of rape against another man.
The jury is now considering its verdicts.
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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand
