2016-07-27
The Queensland Greens are calling on the state Labor government to move away from imprisoning young people and invest more in rehabilitation and support services.
Greens spokesperson Andrew Bartlett says, "it is very clear that putting young people in jails is a very expensive failure which is likely to further brutalise people who are often already damaged."
"It is time to get off this failed treadmill. Things will not change until governments invest in prevention and assistance, rather than pouring more money into jails and punishment.
"The level of youth imprisonment is far too high, and the proportion of these young people who are from Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander backgrounds is disgraceful.
"While the many allegations of mistreatment and abuse of young people in detention in any part of the country should be fully investigated and dealt with, it is also time to accept that the whole policy of incarcerating youth is a very expensive, damaging failure.
"The Palaszczuk government has made some good initial moves winding back the failed 'boot camp' excesses of the Newman LNP era, but it is time for quicker, bolder action.
"If we do not take a different approach, the outrages will continue, and we will be revisiting the same debate in ten years’ time. Governments failed to act on the recommendations of the Royal Commission into Aboriginal Deaths in Custody which dealt extensively with issues of incarceration.
"The Greens believe the federal government's new Royal Commission into incidents of abuse in youth detention in the Northern Territory should be widened to cover the whole country, but state governments can also take concrete action now to stop this cycle of violence and waste of both lives and money.”
For further comment, contact Andrew Bartlett.