Indigenous anger as government rejects calls for justice reform

By Callum Godde, AAP

The government’s response to recommendations from a child protection and criminal justice inquiry has been criticized by Aboriginal and human rights groups.

Aboriginal and human rights advocates have criticized the Victorian government’s response to a truth-telling inquiry into the child protection and criminal justice systems.

The Yoorrook Justice Commission made 46 recommendations in an interim report released in September after 84 witnesses spoke during 27 days of public hearings into the systems.

The state government has accepted four of the recommendations in full and 24 in principle, it announced on Wednesday.

Another 15 remain under discussion, including autonomous indigenous justice and child protection systems and a new independent police watchdog.

Three recommendations were flatly rejected, including the urgent raising of the minimum age of criminal responsibility to 14, with no exceptions, and a ban on the detention of children under 16.

Others were to create a presumption in favor of bail for all offenses except murder, terrorism and similar charges, and to strengthen the state’s Charter of Human Rights.

Yoorrook president Eleanor Bourke said commissioners were disappointed by the government’s rejection.

“The recommendations on the Bail and Minimum Age of Criminal Responsibility and Detention Act are crucial given the alarming over-incarceration of First Nations adults and children and deaths in custody,” she said.

“These recommendations were not made lightly. They go to the heart of addressing the ongoing injustice against First Peoples.”

The commission expects progress on the 15 recommendations that remain under discussion and warns it may convene further hearings later in 2024 to hold the government to account.

Victoria’s Aboriginal Legal Service said the response was unworthy of the heartbreaking truths told to the commission.

“We have waited over 210 days for the Victorian Government to respond to the Yoorrook Report for Justice and it looks like it has been slapped in the face overnight,” Chief Executive Nerita Waight said.

“It is so disappointing that the Victorian Government has not taken this more seriously and developed a more detailed response that fully supports all the recommendations.”

She said it felt like “paralysis” had set in the government since Jacinta Allan took over as premier from Daniel Andrews.

Assembly of First Peoples Victoria co-chair Ngarra Murray was frustrated by the same flashpoints that emerged and disappointed by the lack of respect for community members who participated in the inquiry.

“The stubbornness of the government when it comes to the slow deadline for raising the age is very frustrating,” she said.

“We won’t let her rest.”

The Human Rights Law Center described the response as weak and called the government’s plan to raise the age of criminal responsibility to just 12, before raising it to 14 with some exceptions, a betrayal of Victoria’s children.

“The Prime Minister must answer for why he failed to act on the clarion calls of Yoorrook, Aboriginal leaders, organizations and communities and instead chose a path that will continue to harm Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children in youth prisons” , Monique, the center’s managing attorney. Hurley said.

Treaties and First Peoples Minister Natalie Hutchins said the Allan government is taking the recommendations seriously when asked why people should bother telling their traumatic stories if they don’t implement the changes.

She said she understood the frustration of Aboriginal people who want faster solutions after having to deal with the effects of colonization for more than 200 years.

“But as a government we have an obligation to the Victorian people to make sure the laws, the changes and the policy settings are right,” she told reporters.

Ms Allan is scheduled to testify before the commission at the end of April as part of the latest land, sky and water inquiry.

Yoorrook’s final report is due in 2025.