2018-06-26
Heartbreaking revelations that 100% of kids in Northern Territory Youth Detention are Aboriginal shows a completely broken justice system that is still not addressing systemic racism that has purveyed for so long.
“There’s no other way to put it, the fact that there are no non-indigenous kids in NT youth detention at the moment is a result of a broken system that disproportionately incarcerates First Peoples youth.
“The statistic is heartbreaking. This is what happens after a prolonged continuation of a broken system that harms rather than helps and failure by Government to address underlying causes and provide preventative wrap around services.
“I urge the Commonwealth and Territory Government to implement the recommendations put forward by the Royal Commission into youth detention in the NT.
“This awful situation is an indictment of Government’s attempts to close the gap, we have had a thorough investigation into the issue and the government can look to immediately improve the rate of young Aboriginal people being incarcerated in the NT, whilst helping to transition kids out of the system”.