The Northern Territory government has been accused of “funnelling Aboriginal children into prisons” over draft youth justice laws that would give police the power to charge, detain and question young people for up to 48 hours without a legal guardian.
Under the proposed amendments to the NT Youth Justice Act, introduced by the corrections minister, Gerard Maley, young people charged with an offence would be able to be held for up to 48 hours in police watch houses, interviewed if they have “knowledge in relation to an offence”, and questioned without an adult present if it is “in relation to a serious and urgent matter concerning public safety”.
The draft laws were introduced the day after child protection changes which would replace the Aboriginal Child Placement Principle. Child protection minister, Robyn Cahill, also announced a review into the sector after the death of five-year-old Kumajayi Little Baby in Alice Springs last month.
First Nations justice director at the Human Rights Law Centre, Maggie Munn, said the proposed changes to the Youth Justice Act would discriminate against Indigenous children and jeopardise their safety and wellbeing.
Munn told Guardian Australia there was “already a crisis unfolding” in NT watch houses, after the territory’s prison watchdog raised concerns about “oppressive conditions including severe overcrowding [and] inhumane toilet access”.
“The NT government knows these laws will expose more children to these barbaric conditions in police cells … Our children deserve care, not cages,” Munn said.
“Police watch houses are not safe places for children, and detaining children in watch houses for up to 48 hours is inhumane.
“Allowing police to question children without an adult present contravenes their basic rights. Children need an adult present during police interviews to protect their rights and wellbeing, and to ensure they’re not coerced or treated unfairly by police.
“The NT government is racing to the bottom on youth justice, and these changes will see more First Nations kids behind bars.”
Guardian Australia has contacted the territory government and Maley’s office for comment.
In a statement, a spokesperson for the NT police said they did “not anticipate frequent utilisation of this provision”, and said that watch houses did “provide adequate care and supervision” for youth detainees.
NT police said the amendment was “structured to preserve the fundamental right to silence”, while allowing police to source information “necessary to protect the community or support early intervention” without compromising a young person’s legal position.
“Police must inform the young person of their right to silence before an urgent protected interview takes place and if exercised the interview cannot proceed,” they said. “Where a young person participates in the urgent interview, anything they say during the interview is not admissible in any subsequent criminal or civil proceedings against them.
“Any such interaction will be recorded on body-worn camera, ensuring transparency and accountability, and allowing it to be reviewed at any time.”
Child protection review
Meanwhile, First Nations legal and child protection advocates have criticised the NT government for failing to widen the scope of its review into the child protection services.
Arrernte and Luritja woman Catherine Liddle, the CEO of the Secretariat of National Aboriginal and Islander Child Care (Snaicc), a peak body for Indigenous children, said the current scope of the review, which is headed by former NSW police commissioner Karen Webb and longtime NT public servant Greg Shanahan, “provides limited opportunity to examine the broader child protection system and the interconnected issues that continue to shape poor outcomes for children and families across the Northern Territory”.
“With such a narrow focus, it is difficult to see how the inquiry could deliver meaningful findings or recommendations capable of driving systemic reform across the department as a whole,” Liddle said.
A final report will be handed to Cahill within three months.
