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Alarm over jailing of indigenous women

By Mark Metherell

21 March 2003 - The imprisonment rate of indigenous women is unacceptably high and rising, with a greater proportion in NSW being jailed for minor offences, says the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders Commissioner, William Jonas.

In NSW, indigenous women represent 30 per cent of women in prison, 15 times the population rate, Dr Jonas says in his annual report.

There was a 440 per cent rise in indigenous women jailed for robbery since 1994 and a 366 per cent rise for those jailed for driving and related offences.

Dr Jonas said this was occurring “in the context of intolerably high levels of family violence, over-policing for selected offences, ill-health, unemployment and poverty. Studies of indigenous women in prison reveal experiences of life in a society fraught with danger from violence”.

The Democrats’ spokesman on indigenous affairs, Aden Ridgeway, said the report showed that the number of women in jail had risen by 2 times in the decade since the Royal Commission on Aboriginal Deaths in Custody.

He said the Carr Government had been in power for most of the time since the commission’s report and it must examine the effects of its “law and order” policies.

The Federal Government yesterday expressed “serious concerns” about the jailing figures. A spokesman for the Indigenous Affairs Minister, Philip Ruddock, said it would examine what action it could take to improve the situation.

But Dr Jonas criticised the Government, saying: “While reconciliation was a priority for the second term ... it does not even rate a mention in recent announcements of the Government’s strategic long-term vision for Australian society. Indigenous issues are no longer treated as a national priority.”

Mr Ruddock’s spokesman said this was not true and that the continued record federal funding of indigenous communities was evidence of that.

Source: The Sydney Morning Herald

Social Justice Report - Reconciliation Not Incarceration

Senator Aden Ridgeway
Media Release

20 March 2003 - The Australian Democrats today welcomed the release of annual Native Title and Social Justice Reports by the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice Commissioner, Bill Jonas, but say the statistics regarding incarceration rates for Indigenous women in NSW are tragic.

“The Social Justice report shows Indigenous women are currently incarcerated at a rate higher than any other group in Australia - with their prison population increasing 255% in the decade since the Royal Commission into Aboriginal Deaths in Custody,” said Democrats’ Indigenous Affairs spokesperson, Senator Aden Ridgeway.

“In my home state of NSW, Indigenous women represent 30% of the total female population in custody but are only 2% of the general population.

“This over-representation of Indigenous women in NSW is well above the national rate with a greater proportion of Indigenous women in NSW being imprisoned for minor offences and on remand.

“The Carr Government has now been in power for the majority of time since the Royal Commission report was released and I call on the State Government to examine these after effects of their ‘law and order’ policies, and to ask themselves how they are creating a better and safer society for Indigenous people in NSW.

“While the Democrats welcome Commissioner Jonas’ comments on the positive developments in Indigenous policy, we also agree that the Federal Government’s approach to Indigenous policy has been antagonistic and adversarial and its limited focus has undermined the bi-partisan support for Reconciliation,” concluded Senator Ridgeway.

The Democrats-initiated Senate Inquiry into the Government’s progress towards national Reconciliation held its first hearings yesterday.

Seventy-nine different groups and individuals have made submissions to this Inquiry which is due to report in mid-June.

related links :

• HREOC Social Justice Report

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