The Prime Minister of Australia has responded to calls for an “emergency intervention” in the Northern Territory justice system following a second death in custody for the region in as many weeks.
Australia’s largest Aboriginal legal service has called on the Federal Government to intervene and hold emergency talks with the Commonwealth, NT Government and Aboriginal organisations.
It comes after the death of a 68-year-old senior Elder from Wadeye at the weekend, two weeks after the death of a 24-year-old Warlpiri man in Alice Springs.
NAAJA Chair Theresa Roe said the legal service is “calling on the Prime Minister and the Federal Government to have an emergency intervention into the NT Government, particularly the justice system.”
“I don’t think there is any Aboriginal family in the Northern Territory that is not affected, that have family in the justice system,” she told NITV.
Since being elected in August last year, the NT Country Liberal Government has enacted a string of reforms that have collectively reduced the circumstances under which people can be granted bail and allowed police to make arrests for public intoxication.
Ms Roe said people represented by NAAJA believe the laws are targeting First Nations people.
“It’s targeted towards Aboriginal people what’s going on, they believe they have been targeted by these laws.”
Government data shows nearly 50 per cent of NT prisoners are on remand.
Since the CLP came to power, prisoner numbers have increased to around 2800, up from 2223 in August 2024.
“Communities are very fearful, particularly with these recent deaths in custody, but also because of the high incarceration rates,” Ms Roe said.
This week, federal MP Marion Scrymgour joined calls for more to be done by the Federal Government to address those concerns.
“Governments can’t ignore the groundswell or that people are concerned,” Ms Scrymgour told the ABC.
The member for Lingiari went on to call out a lack of action over the recommendations of the 1991 Royal Commission into Aboriginal Deaths in Custody.
“Everyone has taken their eye off the ball in terms of the recommendation,” she said.
Addressing the National Press Club on Tuesday, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese faced questions from SBS Political Correspondent Anna Henderson over what action he would consider.
In response, the Prime Minister said he would “need to be convinced that people in Canberra know better than the people in the Northern Territory to deal with these issues.”
“We do need to engage directly and constructively with First Nations people,” he continued.
The NT Police Force has rejected requests from multiple Aboriginal-controlled organisations, including the Northern and Central Land Councils, and the Minister for Indigenous Australians Malarndirri McCarthy, to hand over the death in custody investigation to an independent body.
Speaking to RN Breakfast on Tuesday morning, independent senator Lidia Thorpe said the NT government and its chief minister, Lia Finocchiaro, were complicit in “genocide”.
In a statement, the Chief Minister said, “We categorically reject and dismiss these absurd claims.”
“The politicisation of a death in custody by federal Independent and Labor MPs shows just how little respect they have for the grieving family, the Northern Territory Police Force, and the broader NT community.
“Like every other jurisdiction, the Northern Territory Police will conduct a full investigation into the death of Kumanjayi White, alongside an independent coronial investigation. Similarly, the recent AFP death in custody incident will also be investigated by NT Police.”