The country is being urged to give Tom Phillips' children time and space to begin their long road to recovery. 

The children are now at an undisclosed location after their father died during an altercation with Police near Marokopa in western Waikato. 

Children's Commissioner Claire Achmad told Mike Hosking the children's needs must come first. 

She says over time, more can be understood about what's happened, but right now the privacy of the children is the most crucial thing. 

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