Peter Dutton call for Indigenous sex abuse inquiry

Peter Dutton has called for a royal commission to examine child sexual abuse in Indigenous communities, which he says has been ‘normalised’ over the years.

Opposition Leader Peter Dutton. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Gary Ramage

Peter Dutton has called for a royal commission to examine child sexual abuse in Indigenous communities, which he says has been “normalised” over the years.

On the fourth anniversary of the national apology for victims and survivors of institutional child sexual abuse, the Opposition Leader said more had to be done to protect indigenous children.

“The national apology came to fruition because of a royal commission and in the spirit of the fourth anniversary and our enduring commitment to keeping children safe. It is time for a new royal commission to examine child sexual abuse in Indigenous communities,” he said. “We support immediate action from this government on the Northern Territory government on this incredibly important issue.”

Mr Dutton said he had discussed the matter with Anthony ­Albanese on a number of occasions, and The Australian understands Mr Dutton will write to the Prime Minister to formalise the request.

“Women and mothers ­despairingly told us about random child sexual abuse and what’s happening on the fringe of communities is abominable,” he said. “Children are sleeping during the day … to avoid being home during the hours of darkness from fear of being sexually abused or assaulted.”

Mr Dutton said Australia had been silent about the issue for “too long”. It comes as the Coalition and Labor continue talks on the Indigenous voice to parliament, with more than $50m allocated in the budget for the Australian Electoral Commission to prepare for a referendum.

Uluru Dialogues leader Eddie Synot said it was “important confirmation that it is happening”.

Mr Dutton has raised concerns about the detail surrounding the voice, but said on Thursday there was “good will” on both sides for initiatives to improve the lives of Indigenous Australians.

Between 2016-17 and 2020-21, the number of Indigenous ­children who were the subject of a child protection substantiation increased by 6.2 per cent from ­approximately 13,700 to 14,600 children, according to the Australian Institute of Health and ­Welfare.

Mr Dutton said while children were unjustly taken from homes as part of the Stolen Generations, they were now not being removed when they should be.

“We know that Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders are more prone to be sexual assaulted … The absolute tragedy of the Stolen Generation is that children were taken from safe and loving homes but today conversely … children are not being taken from homes where they have been harmed and abused,” he said.

“This is not about creating another Stolen Generation. It’s about preventing a new generation from having their lives and aspirations stolen.”

Minister for Indigenous Australians Linda Burney said she was focussed on “concrete action” that made a difference to the rates of child sex abuse in Indigenous communities.

“As a First Nations woman with decades of experience in education and child protection, I know the best way to protect children is to work with communities,” she said in a tweet.

She pointed to the $1.7bn in the budget to tackle all forms of violence against women and children.

In commemorating the fourth anniversary of the national apology for victims and survivors of institutional child sexual abuse, Mr Albanese said: “There is so much more to be done, not just in our institutions but in our families, our communities and increasingly, online.

“We have to keep going because the true test for all of us as a parliament and indeed as a nation is whether we can one day look back on the apology as a turning point and not just a full stop.”

A royal commission into institutional child sexual abuse was launched in 2012 by Julia Gillard, with 17,000 survivors coming forward in response.