Linda Burney announces $81m for justice reinvestment in Darwin, Australia

More than $81m in federal funding will target justice reinvestment programs across Australia, designed to keep Indigenous people out of prison. Here’s where the money will be spent in the NT.

Three Territory towns and communities as well as Darwin will share in $81.5m to keep Aboriginal people out of prison.

Indigenous Australians Minister Linda Burney was in the Top End on Wednesday to spruik the announcement, which will benefit justice reinvestment programs in Darwin, Katherine, Groote Eylandt and Lajamanu.

The package will be unevenly distributed across 30 Australian communities, half of which have already expressed interest in the grant program.

Justice reinvestment programs in Alice Springs and Central Australia has already been allocated $10m.

Indigenous Australians Minister Linda Burney has announced $81.5m of federal government money for justice reinvestment programs in 30 Australian communities, towns and cities. Picture: Supplied

The latest Bureau of Statistics data show one in every 100 Territorians was in prison, whereas three in every 100 Indigenous Territorians were in prison.

Aboriginal children made up 97 per cent of children in Territory youth detention and 87.5 per cent of incarcerated children were unsentenced, a recent Justice Reform Initiative report indicated.

Ms Burney, speaking ahead of the Joint Council on Closing the Gap meeting in Darwin, said these figures were the country’s “national shame”.

“More than 30 years after the Royal Commission into Aboriginal deaths in custody, rates of incarceration of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, men, women and young people are a national shame,” she said.

“We cannot stand by and see young people robbed of their futures by a justice system that too often lets them down.

“We can and we must do better.”

The money is set to target both new and existing justice reinvestment programs, each of which will be tailor-designed by communities.

Other Australian towns and communities to receive grants include Townsville, Port Augusta, Doomadgee in Queensland and Newman in Western Australia.

Ms Burney said the programs, to be equally funded by the federal government and state and Territory governments, was about “keeping people out of prison”.

“It might be connecting young people back up to culture, it might be working with the local police to get them involved in school programs,” she said.

“It might be working with the local business owners in terms of employment and training, it might be men’s behaviour groups to deal with domestic violence.

“It’s not a cookie cutter model … it will be absolutely up to the local community to determine what they think is needed.”

Indigenous Australians Minister Linda Burney, along with NT Aboriginal Affairs Minister Selena Uibo and NT Senator Malarndirri McCarthy have announced a landmark $81.5m package for justice reinvestment. Deputy Lead Convenor Coalition of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peak Organisations Catherine Liddle was also present. Picture: Supplied

Catherine Liddle, the deputy lead convener of the Coalition of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peak Organisations, said the announcement was welcomed amid justice targets heading “alarmingly off-track”.

“Where we see pockets of self determination, we get different outcomes,” she said.

“(But) for these announcements to work it’s going to take a lot of work.”

Ms Liddle said Coalition of Peaks members would be sitting down with Ms Burney, Senator Malarndirri McCarthy, Aboriginal Affairs Minister Selena Uibo and other Australian politicians at Wednesday’s meeting to create a practical way forward on the programs.

“This is where we talk to the ministers as frankly as we can and have those really fierce conversations about what change can look like,” Ms Liddle said.

Originally published as Linda Burney announces $81m for justice reinvestment in Darwin, Australia