Child abuse in New Zealand is defined under section 2 of the Oranga Tamariki Act 1989 as the harming of a child by physically, emotionally or sexually ill treating them through abuse or neglect. Prevention of such abuse in New Zealand is seen as a high priority by the New Zealand government as well as relevant non governmental organisations due to the prevalence of child abuse cases occurring in New Zealand, particularly when compared with other developed countries. This response is consistent with New Zealand's obligations under the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child at article 34 – 35 which deals specifically with Child Abuse. This convention places obligations on New Zealand as a state to protect the rights of the child and was ratified by New Zealand in 1993. Statistics In 2007 the rate of deaths of children and young persons under the age of 19 years in New Zealand caused by accidents, murder, suicide or violence were extremely high compared with other OECD countries, with New Zealand having the highest rate of such deaths along with the United States. The reports by the Child Poverty Action Group of New Zealand confirms this need to be aware of the increasing statistic of child abuse findings. A trend can be noticed of increasing concern for child abuse, as in the 2013 financial year compared with 2012 there was an increase in child abuse reports as well as substantive findings. The report also details the types of abuse suffered and where this abuse is most prevalent, stating that sexual abuse as a form of child abuse within New Zealand made up the smallest percentage of abused children, and defined the main form of abuse as emotional abuse, also that across the many site offices where child abuse was recorded, Papakura, a suburb of Auckland, had the highest rate of child abuse cases, with Wellington having the fewest reported cases. Contributing factors There has been extensive research undertaken in New Zealand regarding the reasons behind child abuse and understanding the factors behind it is crucial to addressing this problem. In the study by the Ministry of Development in December 2010 the study commented that the main causes of child abuse within New Zealand were due to substance abuse, as well as poor parenting practices through generations. Drug and alcohol abuse put a child in an environment in which the