Claire Indrawati Achmad is a New Zealand lawyer, and is the Chief Children's Commissioner for New Zealand.

Early life and education

Achmad has a

Pākehā ''Pākehā'' (or ''Pakeha''; ; ) is a Māori language, Māori-language word used in English, particularly in New Zealand. It generally means a non-Polynesians, Polynesian New Zealanders, New Zealander or more specifically a European New Zeala ...

mother and a

Java Java is one of the Greater Sunda Islands in Indonesia. It is bordered by the Indian Ocean to the south and the Java Sea (a part of Pacific Ocean) to the north. With a population of 156.9 million people (including Madura) in mid 2024, proje ...

nese father. She grew up in the Waitakere Ranges, and was educated at Titirangi Primary School, Glen Eden Intermediate School, and

Avondale College Avondale College is a state coeducational secondary school located in the central Auckland, New Zealand, suburb of Avondale, Auckland, Avondale. With a roll of students from years 9–13 (ages 12–18), it is the third largest secondary schoo ...

, where she was head girl in her final year. After completing a

Bachelor of Arts A Bachelor of Arts (abbreviated B.A., BA, A.B. or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is the holder of a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the liberal arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts deg ...

and

Bachelor of Laws A Bachelor of Laws (; LLB) is an undergraduate law degree offered in most common law countries as the primary law degree and serves as the first professional qualification for legal practitioners. This degree requires the study of core legal subje ...

at the

University of Auckland The University of Auckland (; Māori: ''Waipapa Taumata Rau'') is a public research university based in Auckland, New Zealand. The institution was established in 1883 as a constituent college of the University of New Zealand. Initially loc ...

, Achmad earned a

PhD A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, DPhil; or ) is a terminal degree that usually denotes the highest level of academic achievement in a given discipline and is awarded following a course of graduate study and original research. The name of the deg ...

titled ''Children's Rights in International Commercial Surrogacy: Exploring the Challenges from a Child Rights, Public International Law Perspective'' at the

University of Leiden Leiden University (abbreviated as ''LEI''; ) is a public research university in Leiden, Netherlands. Established in 1575 by William, Prince of Orange as a Protestant institution, it holds the distinction of being the oldest university in the Neth ...

Career

Achmad worked in child advocacy for the

Human Rights Commission A human rights commission, also known as a human relations commission, is a body set up to investigate, promote or protect human rights. The term may refer to international, national or subnational bodies set up for this purpose, such as nationa ...

World Vision The world is the totality of entities, the whole of reality, or everything that exists. The nature of the world has been conceptualized differently in different fields. Some conceptions see the world as unique, while others talk of a "plu ...

in Melbourne,

UNICEF UNICEF ( ), originally the United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund, officially United Nations Children's Fund since 1953, is an agency of the United Nations responsible for providing Humanitarianism, humanitarian and Development a ...

, and Barnardo's Aotearoa. Achmad is a member of the Asia New Zealand Foundation's Leadership Network. In 2007 Achmad was named CLANZ-Bell Gully Young Corporate Lawyer of the Year. The University of Auckland included Achmad in their '40 under 40' profiles of young alumni "who continue to shine in both their professional and personal lives". Achmad was chief executive of the collective organisation Social Service Providers Te Pai Ora o Aotearoa from 2021 to 2023. In November 2023 she was appointed to a five year term to lead Mana Mokopuna, the Children and Young People’s Commission, which had previously been the Office of the Children’s Commissioner. She replaced Judge

Frances Eivers Frances Jean Eivers is a New Zealand District Court judge; she is Māori and is a member of the Ngāti Maniapoto iwi. In October 2021 she was appointed Children's Commissioner for New Zealand. Biography Eivers was born and brought up in Te T ...

, who returned to the bench. She had been Deputy Children's Commissioner since July 2023. As Commissioner Achmad has expressed concerns about government plans to run military-style bootcamps for young offenders.

Selected works

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References

External links

Report
Achmad talking about the Ministry of Child Poverty Reduction 2023-2024 annual report on the child and youth wellbeing strategy. Via Waatea News {{DEFAULTSORT:Achmad, Claire New Zealand lawyers University of Auckland alumni People educated at Avondale College Leiden University alumni Children's Ombudspersons in New Zealand Year of birth missing (living people) Living people 20th-century births