bipacsa_final_report

Recommendations

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Organisation of this Report The Inquiry decided to frame its report as two complementary sections, so as to increase the report’s accessibility. Part I deals (in simple terms) with what the Inquiry has found through consultations and formal submissions. It incorporates the Inquiry’s recommendations for action to address the issue of child sexual abuse in Aboriginal communities in the NT and, more broadly, the issue of child sexual abuse for all Territory children and young people. Part II provides a detailed assessment of child sexual abuse and related issues – derived from published sources and literature reviews. The Inquiry’s recommendations have been informed by its community consultations, submissions received and forums held, and an assessment of the information which is presented as Part II of the report. 8 8 The Harvard referencing system has been adopted for this Report (literature is cited in the body of the text with full citations provided in the References section)..Sentencing remarks, case notes and other remarks are provided as footnotes. 0 Ampe Akelyernemane Meke Mekarle “Little Children are Sacred”
Recommendations The aim of the following recommendations should be plain from the report. They are offered to the Chief Minister in the knowledge that the safety of children is everybody’s business, not just that of government. Parents have responsibilities too. In the first recommendation, we have specifically referred to the critical importance of governments committing to genuine consultation with Aboriginal people in designing initiatives for Aboriginal communities, whether these be in remote, regional or urban settings. We have been conscious throughout our enquiries of the need for that consultation and for Aboriginal people to be involved. Mr Fred Chaney, in retiring from the National Native Title Tribunal, was asked why successive governments have failed so comprehensively to turn the story of Aboriginal deprivation around. He was being interviewed on the ABC’s 7.30 Report on 19 April 2007 and replied: • And one of the things I think we should have learned by now is that you can’t solve these things by centralised bureaucratic direction. You can only educate children in a school at the place where they live. You can only give people jobs or get people into employment person by person. And I think my own view now is that the lesson we’ve learned is that you need locally based action, local resourcing, local control to really make changes. • But I think governments persist in thinking you can direct from Canberra, you can direct from Perth or Sydney or Melbourne, that you can have programs that run out into communities that aren’t owned by those communities, that aren’t locally controlled and managed, and I think surely that is a thing we should know doesn’t work. • So I am very much in favour of a model which I suppose builds local control in communities as the best of those Native Title agreements do, as has been done in the Argyle Diamond Mine Agreement, as is being done in Kununurra. Not central bureaucracies trying to run things in Aboriginal communities. That doesn’t work. • They’re locked into systems which require central accounting, which require centralised rules and regulations. They’re not locally tailored. The great thing about working with a mining company in an Aboriginal community is that the mining company has the flexibility to manage towards outcomes locally with that community. • The great thing about the education projects in which I’m involved is that we can manage locally for the outcomes that we want to achieve locally. Once you try and do it by remote control, through visiting ministers and visiting bureaucrats fly in, fly out – forget it. The thrust of our recommendations, which are designed to advise the Northern Territory Government on how it can help support communities to effectively prevent and tackle child sexual abuse, is for there to be consultation with, and ownership by the communities, of those solutions. The underlying dysfunctionality where child sexual abuse flourishes needs to be attacked, and the strength returned to Aboriginal people. With that introduction, we set out in their entirety the recommendations which appear throughout the remainder of this part of the report. In those chapters containing recommendations, the recommendations are generally set out at the end of the chapter. In some of the longer chapters, individual recommendations appear immediately following the relevant part of the discussion. Report of the Northern Territory Board of Inquiry into the Protection of Aboriginal Children from Sexual Abuse 2007
Page 1 and 2: Ampe Akelyernemane Meke Mekarle “
Page 3 and 4: NORTHERN TERRITORY GOVERNMENT BOARD
Page 5 and 6: 20. Community justice 175 21. The r
Page 7 and 8: Foreword We were appointed as the B
Page 9 and 10: the problems. It should now be appl
Page 11 and 12: The Inquiry covered 35,000 kilometr
Page 13 and 14: DIMIA Department of Immigration, Mu
Page 15 and 16: What is required is a determined, c
Page 17 and 18: Taking Responsibility We resolved e
Page 19 and 20: In its submission to the Inquiry, t
Page 21: Note: Cessation of the Inquiry At t
Page 25 and 26: Family and Children’s Services 11
Page 27 and 28: 32. That the Office of the Director
Page 29 and 30: organisations, develop and support
Page 31 and 32: 63. That, as a matter of urgency, t
Page 33 and 34: c. The ongoing assistance of a gove
Page 35 and 36: or promised brides, rights of the p
Page 37 and 38: Report of the Northern Territory Bo
Page 39 and 40: Barkly Region The Inquiry met with
Page 41 and 42: PART I BACKGROUND Report of the Nor
Page 43 and 44: appointed as Acting Director of Pub
Page 45 and 46: The US expert, Dr David Finkelhor (
Page 47 and 48: Figure 1
Page 49 and 50: In terms of information-sharing, th
Page 51 and 52: the Future. Addressing Child Sexual
Page 53 and 54: communities has its roots in the
Page 55 and 56: Principle Five Community-based and
Page 57 and 58: Principle Eight Adequate and ongoin
Page 59 and 60: 4. The nature of child sexual abuse
Page 61 and 62: Aboriginal women and children, it i
Page 63 and 64: While the Inquiry found no evidence
Page 65 and 66: Juvenile Offenders Congruent with t
Page 67 and 68: acts. He got them to be involved in
Page 69 and 70: Why does the government stand by an
Page 71 and 72: husband then once she had reached p
Page 73 and 74:
The Inquiry also concludes that tra
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The Inquiry believes the government
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Awareness of sexual abuse occurring
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• that the child victim of abuse
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• History of negative experiences
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Discussion and support for the reco
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7. Government responses That addres
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COAG also asked the Standing Commit
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package designed to “lead the way
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The Board supports inter-agency col
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(and for independent monitoring) is
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Proposals for change in Government
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• Supported Accommodation Assista
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However, as noted above, there is a
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Such a system would have, at its fo
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the Inquiry to recommend that FACS
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staff trained to assist workers to
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In their submission, SARC staff not
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9.3 Responding to children with sex
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10. Police, FACS, prosecutions and
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of the case. Since early September
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confidence and trust in police and
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the SARC office, but not always. Be
Page 119 and 120:
The following recommendations (in i
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put it another way, do not agree th
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conducted in a court in one of the
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• no counselling • continued an
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violence in remote communities. If
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12. Offender rehabilitation 12.1 In
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Previous program The Northern Terri
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The Inquiry takes the view that Cor
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and the second team works with the
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13. Prevention is better than cure
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This implies a range of activities
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that it is still fresh in the minds
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15. Family Support Services There i
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department (the formal child protec
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. that efforts be made to support c
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16. Education “…we’re resourc
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The Inquiry cannot agree more. The
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up to get to school. The song “Go
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The Inquiry was made aware that per
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infrastructure and poor education o
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17. Community education and awarene
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& Poole 2000). Such courses represe
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18. Alcohol 18.1 Introduction The I
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The Inquiry was provided with a let
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on the employment program and enjoy
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From the Inquiry’s perspective, t
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Recommendation 64. That the governm
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Education f. allow the Police, DHCS
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19. Other substance abuse First the
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20. Community justice 20.1 Dialogue
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The Inquiry observed that many Abor
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community rules and sanctions to de
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Significantly, the Inquiry was told
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These “cultural-brokers/external
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community facilitators. The communi
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• Elders and respected persons ha
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21. The role of communities 21.1 In
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Some communities have functioning s
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22. Employment Of greatest concern
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23. Housing The shortage of Indigen
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costs and rising material costs, es
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24. Pornography The issue of childr
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25. Gambling Gambling was seen by m
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The Inquiry believes that such trai
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We need to keep before the public e
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PART II SUPPORTING RESEARCH Report
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2. Child sexual abuse: the nature o
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3. The perpetrators of sexual abuse
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Offender treatment programs In the
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while a cost-benefits argument has
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adolescents who sexually offend. Th
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& Zigler 1987). This figure needs t
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abuse and other family violence. Th
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many people. Indeed, Indigenous per
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Substance abuse Gelles (1993) cites
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to the high accessibility of alcoho
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The National Drug Strategy Backgrou
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7. Setting the scene: the NT contex
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7.3 Indigenous housing The ABS Cens
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which surround child sexual abuse,
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information from DHCS, received 28
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Because of a previous failure to re
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Indigenous and remote Indigenous po
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out-of-home care because their pare
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offending in the Territory 22 . The
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• adult attempted sexual intercou
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the set of offences to be assessed
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Case outcomes From 2001-02 to 2004-
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Figure 17: Finalised case outcomes
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9. Child protection systems: an ove
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of a “forensic” or legalistic a
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initiatives designed to enhance chi
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children’s vulnerability to socia
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children (US Advisory Board on Chil
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It therefore follows that an effect
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Edgar (1999) proposed the developme
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underlying formal structure can the
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apprehended violence orders, lay ch
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services, including the statutory s
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Service development and delivery Th
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as small and hampered by substantia
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10 References Australian Broadcasti
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Clark, R. (1995), ‘Child Protecti
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Finkelhor, D. & Russell, D.E.H. (19
Page 287 and 288:
Karp, N. (1996), Individualized wra
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NT Department of Community Developm
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Tomison, A.M. (1995b), Update on Ch
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APPENDICES Report of the Northern T
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Appendix 2: Inquiry processes Index
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sought when in-depth analysis is re
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• An exit strategy should be deve
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• Make it clear that participatio
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9. Attachments 9.1. Informed consen
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Attachment 2: Prompt Questions for
Page 307 and 308:
Attachment 3: List of approved coun
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Mr D. Howard, Psychologist, Phoenix
Page 311 and 312:
49. Milingimbi Clinic 50. Mutitjulu
Page 313 and 314:
181. Gapuwiyak Women 182. Angurugu
Page 315 and 316:
Appendix 5: List of sex offences us
Page 317 and 318:
Offence grouping C_ACT C_SECTION Of
Page 320:
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