Call for rethink on mandated dry zones in Aboriginal communities

THE chief executive of a Top End Aboriginal corporation is calling for an end to government mandated dry zones

Nauiyu Nambiyu Aboriginal Corporation chief executive Tony Lane says dry communities are failing to curb harmful drinking. Picture: Keri Megelus

THE chief executive of a Top End Aboriginal corporation is calling for an end to government mandated dry zones in indigenous communities, saying the policy does more harm than good.

Nauiyu Nambiyu CEO Tony Lane said “making remote communities dry needs to be reconsidered” to stop drinkers being taken advantage of by unscrupulous city publicans.

Mr Lane said social clubs managed on country sold only small amounts of low-strength alcohol, while keeping families together and minimising anti-social behaviour elsewhere.

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“Most problem drinkers at the moment will leave community and come to licensed establishments in the towns or in Darwin and get effectively unrestricted access to alcohol by publicans who are there for profit and not for the wellbeing of indigenous people,” he said.

“I think there’s a lot to allowing social clubs on communities to sell alcohol on a very restrictive basis and it also keeps the money in the community – keeps it there for kids’ sporting programs or for footy teams or whatever.”

A list of dry communities in the Northern Territory.

Ironbark Aboriginal Corporation activities co-ordinator, Trevor Hutchinson, who has worked in Daly River since before the 2007 Intervention, said forcing feuding clan groups to drink together out of town also stoked local tensions.

“Nowadays there’s a little bit of infighting around the community – certain clan groups don’t want to interact with others – it’s a bit of a hard case to make them all drink at one place,” he said.

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Mr Hutchinson said rather than eliminating the problem in Nauiyu, the restrictions had simply created a black market for sly grog and actually increased binge drinking.

“Not having a controlled area with bylaws and a board governing over it we find that people tend to try and drink as much as they possibly can before they get back into their dry community,” he said.

Police statistics show indigenous incarceration rates in the NT rose from 1857 per 100,000 people in the 12 months immediately prior to the intervention to 2214 per 100,000 people two years later.

Federal Indigenous Affairs Minister Nigel Scullion did not respond to a request for comment but Member for Daly Gary Higgins said: “We will continue to respect and support each community in determining their approach to alcohol in their community.”

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A federal Labor spokesman said if elected, a Shorten government would “work with communities on locally-driven plans to reduce alcohol consumption, and alcohol related crime and injuries”.

“Alcohol management plans are part of that, but there must be a range of community-led approaches,” he said.