High Court finds tear-gassing children unlawful as legal and human rights organisations call for children to be kept out of prison
Change the Record, the National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Legal Services and the Human Rights Law Centre have welcomed today’s High Court decision confirming that the use of tear gas on children in Don Dale in 2014 was unlawful.
In 2014 images of an Aboriginal teenager, hooded and shackled to a chair, sparked a Royal Commission into the abuse and mistreatment of children in youth detention - yet many of its recommendations have not been acted on.
Today’s High Court Decision found that the use of tear gas on children in detention was unlawful and amounted to battery. The use of tear-gas on children in such circumstances is cruel and inhumane under international law and should be expressly prohibited.
Change the Record, NATSILS and the Human Rights Law Centre call on the Northern Territory Government, and all state and territory governments, to take heed of this decision and:
Stop imprisoning Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children and raise the age of legal responsibility from 10 to 14 years.
Implement all recommendations of the Northern Territory Royal Commission into the Protection and Detention of Children in the Northern Territory and the 1991 Royal Commission into Aboriginal Deaths in Custody.
Cheryl Axleby, Change the Record Co-Chair:
“The High Court has confirmed that our kids were subjected to unlawful, cruel treatment in Don Dale Youth Detention Centre - when they should have been looked after. This decision has been handed down as First Nations people here and in America are standing up and demanding an end to police and prison brutality, an end to black deaths in custody and an end to the mass-incarceration of our people.”
Nerita Waight, Co-chair of National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Legal Services:
“The world is shining a light onto the racism, injustices and brutality that Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children experience every day in the Australian criminal justice system. This High Court decision is a win for our kids who had their rights breached at Don Dale, and in prisons right across Australia. It’s time for the Northern Territory government to urgently implement the Royal Commission’s recommendations. We call for governments to raise the age of legal responsibility to at least 14 years to stem the tide of incarceration of our communities and give the next generation of Aboriginal children a chance at a brighter future.”
Shahleena Musk, Senior Lawyer, Human Rights Law Centre:
“This decision confirms what we already knew - that vulnerable children in Don Dale were abused. These kids should have been protected and looked after not tear gassed in confined spaces. All children should be treated with dignity and respect. But now right across Australia, we know that children continue to be mistreated behind bars. Every single state and territory must change their laws and prohibit cruel and inhuman treatment. The NT Government must implement all of the recommendations from the Royal Commission. How we treat children today shapes our tomorrow.”
Media Contacts:
Sophie Trevitt - EO Change the Record, 0431 843 095 sophie@changetherecord.org.au
Sonia Sofat - Communications Adviser - NATSILS, 0407 780 643 ssofat@vals.org.au
Michelle Bennett - Communications Director - Human Rights Law Centre, 0419 100 519