Attorney-General
Minister for Emergency Management
Special Minister of State
Minister for the Public Service and Integrity
The Hon Mark Dreyfus QC MP
Minister for Home Affairs
Minister for Justice
Cabinet Secretary
The Hon Jason Clare MP
Joint Media Release
20 Years on - Improvements in death-in-custody rates but more to be done
The Australian Government has welcomed today's National Deaths in Custody Program Monitoring Report findings that death-in-custody rates have decreased significantly in the past decade.
"Twenty years after the landmark Royal Commission into Aboriginal Deaths in Custody, the rates of deaths in custody for Indigenous and non-Indigenous prisoners, particularly suicides, are some of the lowest recorded," Attorney-General Mark Dreyfus said.
The Australian Institute of Criminology's report shows that for 2003-11 most deaths in custody were due to natural causes, with Indigenous people less likely to die in prison (0.16 per 100 in 2010-11) than non-Indigenous people (0.22 per 100).
"Agencies have been vigilant in monitoring and reporting and have taken practical steps, including training officers in how to identify and handle prisoners at risk of self-harm," Mr Dreyfus said.
"These encouraging findings are the result of efforts across governments, police and prison authorities to address deaths in custody and minimise risk of self-harm, but there is still more to be done.
"In the 20 years since the Royal Commission, the number of Indigenous prisoners has almost doubled and it is deeply concerning that the actual number of Indigenous deaths in prison is rising again.
"Prisons are a state and territory responsibility. Liberal Governments need to take a hard look at whether their law and order policies are working and at ways to reduce Indigenous incarceration and offending.
"In my portfolio alone, the Australian Government is spending more than $120 million on targeted legal assistance for Indigenous Australians, prevention and diversion programs for those at risk of offending and projects designed to reduce rates of reoffending.
"We must also continue to work towards addressing the underlying disadvantage which is at the heart of overrepresentation of Indigenous Australians in the justice system."
The Australian Government is supporting state and territory governments to close the gap in Indigenous disadvantage, with a historic investment of $4.6 billion through a series of Indigenous-specific and mainstream National Partnership Agreements.
The Commonwealth has also made a 10-year commitment to improving outcomes for Indigenous Australians in the Northern Territory through the Stronger Futures Package.
"These investments in health, employment, education, housing, early childhood, leadership and governance are necessary to achieve safer communities and in turn close the gap on all forms of disadvantage," Mr Dreyfus said.
Minister for Justice Jason Clare welcomed the findings and the quality of the report produced by the Australian Institute of Criminology.
"This is one example of the more than 70 reports and research papers prepared by the Australian Institute of Criminology each year," Mr Clare said.
The report is available at: www.aic.gov.au
FRIDAY, 24 MAY 2013
