NT police acting commissioner questioned over Kumanjayi White death investigation

ABC NEWS (Australia)

There's growing pressure on the federal government to step in and hold an independent inquiry into the death in custody of 24-year-old Kumanjayi White in Alice Springs. Independent Senator Lidia Thorpe has called the situation a national crisis.

Transcript

00:00It's just ongoing trauma and pain and loss and fear.

00:09With so many deaths in custody, almost 600 deaths in custody that we know of, it's a

00:16question in everyone's mind of when will this end?

00:21When will this ongoing trauma and pain and loss end for our people?

00:29It puts fear into parents, particularly about their kids, their boys growing up, and that

00:37there's no support for these families, that they're just reeling in loss and pain.

00:46My office is constantly working with families and other supporters to ensure that we provide

00:54as much support to those families as we can.

00:59It's hard as an independent office with only myself and a small team, but no-one else is

01:05doing it and that's part of the problem.

01:08We can't trust the police when there is no justice.

01:13There is no peace.

01:15And we know that, particularly through the Koemanje inquiry and what the coroner's investigation

01:22going on there, that the Northern Territory Police have been found to be racist.

01:28So how can we trust police when they're known racists to do the right thing by our people?

01:37So there's a real distrust out there and we need to get that trust back into our communities

01:43through federal leadership.

01:45There's been no oversight of the 339 recommendations at the federal level since the demise of ATSIC,

01:53and that was 20 years ago.

01:55I've been talking to the Social Justice Commissioner to see if they could take on the responsibility.

02:01They've agreed to that, but the federal government have not provided the resources that go with

02:06that.

02:07The government, particularly the Minister for Indigenous Affairs, always handballs the responsibility

02:14to state and territory governments.

02:18Therefore, bring them together and have a look at what recommendations may have been implemented

02:26and what's left.

02:27We know that hanging points is one that's not being looked at, and we know that there are

02:34preventable deaths in custody that just should not be happening.

02:39So a federal caucus, if you like, of bringing those states and territories together to all

02:46take responsibility for this national crisis, because that's what it is.

02:51The federal government can bring people together, the states and territories on vaping, getting

02:56kids off social media, COVID-19.

03:00So why not deaths in custody when it is increasing in numbers and, you know, they can't even close

03:08the gap in this area because incarceration rates are going through the roof.

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