Youth crime Qld: Fears new measures could trigger ‘human rights emergency’
The state government’s decision to breach human rights law to put its new youth crime measures in place is “abhorrent” and could trigger a “human rights emergency in a broken system” according to Amnesty International.
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The state government’s decision to breach human rights law to put its new youth crime measures in place is “abhorrent” and could trigger a “human rights emergency in a broken system” according to Amnesty International.
It comes as Attorney-General Shannon Fentiman defended the move, saying the decision to override the state’s own human rights act had not been taken lightly.
Police Minister Mark Ryan introduced the government’s latest suite of youth justice laws on Monday, and confirmed a number of measures including making breach of bail an offence is “incompatible” with the state’s human rights act.
“Therefore, in this exceptional case, the (Human Rights Act) is being overridden and its application entirely excluded from the operation of these new provisions to protect community safety,” he said.
Mr Ryan argued there was “some evidence” the size of Queensland’s cohort of hardcore recidivist youth offenders and the rate of their offending had grown in the last 12 months, presenting an “exceptional crisis situation constituting a threat to public safety”.
Overriding the Human Rights Act can be done in “exceptional circumstances” including “war, a state of emergency, an exceptional crisis situation constituting a threat to public safety, health or order”.
The statement of compatibility for the state’s new youth justice measures outlines how making breach of bail an offence for children “limits human rights in a way which is not justified” because less restrictive options are available.
The measure, which the government outlined as “important and legitimate”, would also increase the likelihood of children being detained on remand which was “inconsistent with international standards about the best interests of the child”.
Amnesty International Australia said the measures put forward by the government had “appalling disregard” for the welfare of First Nations children and could trigger a “human rights emergency”.
“It is absolutely horrific that the Queensland Government is proposing a backflip on bail laws that will see more children end up behind bars unsentenced,” campaigner Kacey Teerman said.
“The idea that the Queensland Government is willing to override its own Human Rights Act to see children as young as 10 charged with the same offence as an adult for breaching bail conditions is abhorrent and incompatible with international standards.”
Ms Fentiman, speaking on Thursday, said overriding the human rights act was not done “lightly”.
“An enormous amount of work (has been) done and legal advice (sought) about how we get the balance across with community safety,” she said.
Public feedback to the committee scrutinising the proposed laws will close at noon on February 24.
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