Push for northern prison to take Ashley Youth Detention site
There are calls for the state government to consider using the site of the Ashley Youth Detention Centre for the northern prison, with the detention centre set to close within three years.
Tasmania
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There are calls to consider repurposing the site of the Ashley Youth Detention Centre for the Northern Prison, after it was revealed on Thursday the centre will be shut down within the next three years.
Premier Peter Gutwein said it would be replaced with two new facilities – one in the north and one in the south.
The announcement has sparked discussion about the future of the site, with suggestion it could be a suitable home for the northern prison.
The current proposed site for the northern prison, a reserve which sits five kilometres out of the Westbury township, received a wave of backlash from the community.
Meander Valley Mayor Wayne Johnston said there were “huge problems” with the preferred site.
“I’m sure there’s going to be a lot of appeals on environmental grounds based on our experience with the Meander Dam,” Mr Johnston said.
The mayor said the Premier rang him about the closure of the AYDC half an hour before it was announced.
“Obviously it will have an impact for people who are employed there, 60 permanent staff and also casuals,” Mr Johnston said.
“It will be interesting to see where the government is going to build the new northern prison and if those jobs convert over.”
Mr Johnston said he would consider the AYDC site if he were in government.
“The infrastructure is there at the moment,” Mr Johnston said.
“It would need to have a retrofit to get it up to the standard for maximum security, the site is owned by the government.”
Westbury Residents Against the Prison president Linda Poulton believed site of the AYDC would better suited for the 270 bed prison.
“Clearly it will be a better alternative to a rocky conservation reserve in bushfire prone area,” Ms Poulton said.
“Whether the people of Deloraine want it is another thing.”
Greens MP Rosalie Woodruff said the option should be considered.
“It’s clear the Ashley youth detention centre in 3 years time will be vacant, it’s also clear the Westbury reserve and it’s natural values have to be protected.”
“It’s an opportunity for the Premier to sit down with the people of Deloraine and to look with a clear eye to the right site for a northern remand centre.
Premier Peter Gutwein was asked on Thursday if the AYDC site could potentially house the northern prison, a question he described as “a big jump.”
Justice Minister Elise Archer said the future of the AYDC was yet to be decided.
“That site will be required for another three years, cabinet hasn’t actually discussed what happens in terms of that site or indeed the northern regional prison,” Ms Archer said.
“As minister for corrections, I keep a close interest in these matters.”
Ashley Youth Detention Centre to close
THE scandal-plagued Ashley Youth Detention Centre will be shut down, Premier Peter Gutwein has announced.
The announcement was greeted with relief from opposition parties, and activists who have campaigned for years for the centre’s closure.
Ashley has been the focus of decades of complaints of human rights abuses — including the rape of young people — and is the subject of multiple pending lawsuits.
It is also expected to be a major focus of the Commission of Inquiry into child abuse in government institutions.
Mr Gutwein said despite $10m in upgrades to the facility in recent years, there was a need for “major systemic change”.
“I’ve long held the concern that the allegation of historical abuse and the ongoing speculation around Ashley is not conducive to achieving the best practice outcomes that we have strived for,” he said.
“The events of this week have firmed in my mind that despite the best intentions of management and staff, the centre will continue to be stigmatised and constrained in terms of the outcomes we can achieve for young people.”
Mr Gutwein the centre would be replaced with two new purpose-built facilities in the north and the south of the state based on a therapeutic model.
“Why now? Well, I’ve made a decision, enough is enough. We’re going to change to a new model and we’re going to do so within the next three years.”
Mr Gutwein spent two-and-a-half hours in talks with former AYDC worker Alysha on Wednesday. She tweeted her delight at the announcement.
Mr Gutwein, you showed me your commitment to listen was true. This took courage and integrity that previous Premiers have not had. I saw your face yesterday, I know this decision was made out of genuine care and I am so grateful. My family can feel safe in Tas again 🎉🎉🎉â¤ï¸ðŸ™ðŸ™
— Alysha (@Lyshrose) September 9, 2021
“Mr Gutwein, you showed me your commitment to listen was true,” she said.
“This took courage and integrity that previous Premiers have not had.
“I saw your face yesterday, I know this decision was made out of genuine care and I am so grateful.”
Labor leader Rebecca White paid tribute to Alysha’s courage.
“I’d like to acknowledge Alysha who blew the whistle so loudly on this, that the government could no longer ignore it,” she said.
“The Commission of Inquiry has also no doubt contributed to the decision by the government today.”
“But the thing that’s also just as important as the decision to close Ashley is, is what it is replaced with and it is fundamentally important that it be a therapeutic facility that supports young people to be rehabilitated because we have to remember, children as young as 10 are incarcerated at the detention centre and we can’t give up on them.”
Independent MP for Clark Kristie Johnston says she has been surprised that the government couldn’t guarantee the safety of children when asked during budget estimates hearings this week.
“We know from countless reports that it is not a safe place for young people,” she said.
“The fact the premier has now intervened quite quickly this week to say that it’s not appropriate that it and he will more to close it in the next few years is very welcome news indeed.”
Greens Leader Cassy O’Connor fought tears as we said how glad she was the government had acted to end the brutalisation of young people.
“The Greens have been calling for closure of Ashley for more than five years now and put forward a policy which mirrors the policy that the premier announced today,” she told reporters.
“We’re so happy. I have to say on a personal level, I wasn’t sure that this would ever come to be.”
Greg Barns, SC, from the Prisoners’ Legal Service said govenrments had been asked for years to close the AYDC.
“We told the Labor government and the Hodgman Liberal government it must happen because it was simply an undergraduate school for Risdon Prison,” he said.
“We congratulate Premier Peter Gutwein for taking the action he has to end the abuse of vulnerable children and youth at Ashley.”
And Australian Lawyers Alliance state president Rowena Macdonald said it came not a moment too soon.
“The horrific abuse experienced by children who have been detained at the Ashley Youth Detention Centre over many years is appalling,” she said.
Ministers unaware of public service abusers
NO state government minister is able to say whether child abusers identified by a Royal Commission are working in the Tasmanian state service.
Labor members have asked a series of questions on the topic during budget estimates hearings this week.
They want to know whether any person subject to adverse mention before the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse or its redress scheme, still works for the state service.
But neither the Premier, Attorney-General or Police Minister have been able to answer. Police Commissioner Darren Hine said it was not his responsibility.
Labor’s Michelle O’Byrne said it was hard to believe nobody knew.
“We asked the Premier this question as the head of the public service and the Premier couldn’t answer it and said we should ask that question in the portfolio of Justice,” she said.
“We asked the Attorney-General this question, who is — as she constantly reminds us — the chief law officer of the land.
“She could not answer this question and suggested we go to the Commissioner of Police. The Commissioner of Police cannot answer this question.
“These are three of the most senior positions within our state and no one can tell us whether or not there are people who were named in the Royal Commission who are currently employed in the state service.
“Minister, who can answer that question? Why will none of you answer the question and do you understand that there are potentially children at risk, because no one in your government is taking responsibility about who may be named in the Royal Commission, being employed in our state government?”
Ms Petrusma suggested Ms O’Byrne write a letter to the Premier.
“This government takes a zero tolerance approach …” she said.
“How do you know, you don’t even know the answer to the question?” Ms O’Byrne interjected
“If it’s not the responsibility of Tas Police … and it’s not the responsibility of the Attorney-General and it is not the responsibility of the Premier, who the hell is responsible for finding out whether not there are people named in the Royal Commission who are employed in the state service currently?”
Ms Petrusma later said it was a matter for the head of each government agency.
The committee heard police did not know how many children had been strip-searched in the last year.
“It’s not data that we routinely capture,” Deputy Commissioner Donna Adams said.
Commissioner Darren Hine said strip searchers of children by police were “extremely rare”.
Transparency push for parks plans
THE state government will pass laws to increase transparency around development in national parks after years of complaints the process was too secretive.
Parks Minister Jacquie Petrusma has announced the Reserve Activity Assessment process will become mandatory and will be assessed by an independent panel.
The RAAs — used to assess proposals and developments in national parks — has been criticised by the Federal Court for “having no statutory basis”.
Ms Petrusma says the new laws will provide for appeals against proposals and will see the publication of all leases and licences over public land.
“These reforms will be robust and give the community full confidence in the decision making around reserved land once implemented,” Ms Petrusma said.
And state parliament this morning heard that a new “great walk” proposed for the state’s west coast would lure inexperienced bushwalkers into an area of ferocious and unpredictable weather.
Parliamentary budget estimates hearings have heard the $37m Tydnall Ranges walk proposal would charge visitors around $570 for a room for three days and two nights of hut access and “half price or less” for camping.
Parks chief Jason Jacobi said 7000 walkers are expected to tackle the walk over the most favourable nine months of the year and projections are it will make a $600,000 a year profit.
The walk would create 139 jobs during construction and 40 jobs during operation, he said.
But Greens MP Rosalie Woodruff described the walk as a “barely break-even” proposition with “heroic estimates of visitation”.
“We are attracting them into an area where they would find themselves in dangerous areas with unpredictable weather … extremely unpredictable, it rains 216 days a year,” she said.
Minister for Parks Jacquie Petrusma said she had visited the area and it has left its mark on her.
“The feasibility study shows this project will be a massive boost for the west coast community,” Ms Petrusma said.
“There’s something about it that’s so earthy, it just gets deep into your soul,” she said.
“The feasibility study showed a benefit of 1.13 for Tasmania as a whole. The benefit for the West Coast community is 12.71.”
She said the walk proposal overlapped with one made by former Australian Greens leader Bob Brown
“There’s a lot of similarity between our proposal about what Dr Brown put forward as the Trans-Tarkine trail,” she said.
“Ours is a three-day walk instead of a seven-day walk, which is more feasible.
“This is an initiative that I would think you would warmly welcome.”
‘Collateral damage’: Magistrate to head Ashley sexual harassment inquiry - September 8
THE woman whose sexual harassment complaint has gone all the way to the Premier’s office says she feels like she is the “collateral damage” of a flawed process.
Alysha spent two and a half hours in a meeting with Premier Peter Gutwein on Wednesday.
She says trying to get justice has taken almost two years, affected her family, her health and her reputation.
“No one should have to go to such extraordinary lengths to be heard about something so serious,” she said after the meeting.
Mr Gutwein announced a former magistrate will head the inquiry into claims Alysha’s claims of sexual harassment and bullying at Ashley Youth Detention Centre.
She alleges she was referred to as a “f*** doll”, subject to physical assault and bullying after making a complaint and was told her safety could not be assured.
But it was revealed in budget estimates hearings on Monday her complaint had been dismissed almost two years after it was made — and she has been told the original paperwork has been lost.
“I’m feeling really feel like collateral damage,” she said on Wednesday.
“I feel very resentful because I just wanted to be doing my job in an area that I love, and creating positive change and working with youth and doing the work that needs to desperately needs to be done out there.
“And instead, I am displaced from my role because my department failed their duty of care to keep me safe.
“I am extraordinarily stressed to the point that I fainted in parliament today and an ambulance had to come.”
Alysha said she was glad she was listened about her concerns about the treatment of young people at Ashley but the last 22 months had left her feeling like she was somehow in the wrong.
“You don’t want to have things like that occur in the workplace, sometimes they do,” she said.
“You trust management to handle it quickly and appropriately and keep you safe.
“None of that happened. I begged for them to keep me safe. They refused to. The damage is done.
“A review is something, maybe it’ll help the next person — but nothing has been said to offer empathy or demonstrates support for me and to really show me that there’s any understanding of the damage that this government has done to my family.”
Mr Gutwein said he was committed to a swift and thorough review of the case.
“I wish to thank Alysha for taking the time to meet with me this morning, and I acknowledge how difficult it was for her to speak about these matters,” he said.
“What I heard concerns me greatly and I advised Alysha that I will immediately commence an independent review of the internal process, which has been recently concluded.
“Today I can confirm that former magistrate, Melanie Bartlett, has agreed to conduct this review, which will be conducted independently of Government.
“Ms Bartlett is highly regarded, having made a significant contribution to the justice system in Tasmania, not only in her role as Magistrate but also as a member of the Mental Health Tribunal, the Guardianship and Administration Board, the Anti-Discrimination Tribunal and the Legal Aid Commission.”
Mr Gutwein said he expected the review to be completed within of 30 days.
“The government will ensure that appropriate support is available to anyone impacted by this matter,” he said.
BUDGET ESTIMATES: Questions over child safety at Ashley Detention Centre
A youth institution has been described as “rotten” and calls have grown to close it down after a Minister revealed in a Budget Estimates hearing there were six ongoing investigations into the conduct of Ashley Detention Centre employees.
Independent MP Kristie Johnston asked Children and Youth Minister Sarah Courtney at the Parliamentary Budget Estimates hearing on Tuesday whether individuals named in the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse, or in the National Redress Scheme, still worked at Ashley Detention Centre.
“Can you also give a guarantee that the children in Ashley right now are not at risk of abuse?” Ms Johnston asked.
Ms Courtney did not give a guarantee, but said CCTV had increased at Ashley Detention Centre and said staff had been trained in line with a learning and development framework to care for the youths.
“I would be appalled and incredibly concerned if there is harm occurring presently,” Ms Courtney said.
Department of Communities secretary Michael Pervan said on Wednesday no staff still working at the detention centre have been identified through the National Redress Scheme as alleged perpetrators of sexual abuse.
“Should any further allegations or relevant information concerning sexual abuse at AYDC come to light from redress or any other source, these will be immediately investigated,” he said.
Ms Courtney also revealed on Tuesday six investigations into potential code of conduct breaches of Ashley Detention Centre employees were active as at June 2021.
Labor Leader Rebecca White said there was something “deeply wrong” with this figure.
Ms Courtney said the outstanding investigations, known as ED5s, could include a broader scope of conduct breaches beyond harassment.
Following Ms Courtney’s Estimates hearing, Lawyer Sebastian Buscemi said Ashley Detention Centre was a “brutal” place where youths were “cumulatively punished for things that they should be getting care for”.
“The place is definitely not safe for kids,” he said.
Mr Buscemi said the trauma was “brutalising” children instead of rehabilitating them.
Ms Johnston said a therapeutic approach was needed.
“Ashley is a rotten place,” she said.
“It’s simply not doing what it should be doing and it needs to be closed down, particularly because the minister cannot guarantee the safety of the young people in that facility.”
Slow progress on parks proposals
JUST nine projects proposed under the Liberal’s controversial Expressions of Interest process are operating seven years after the policy was announced, parliament has heard.
Budget estimates hearings have heard a total of 65 proposals have been made for developments in the state’s national parks and reserves.
Minister for State Growth Roger Jaesnch says plans for a hut-based walk on the South Coast Track was still afoot, despite the proponent company being sold.
“The projects, the South Coasts Huts walk, the South East Cape walk and Maria Island Heritage Experience, whichever stage they’re at are unchanged from their initial assessment and will be assessed under the process under the same conditions they were originally,” he said.
“And the public will have the same opportunity to comment.”
Mr Jaensch said the proposals still had a way to go and Co-ordinator General John Perry confirmed that no Reserve Activity Assessment applications had yet been received.
“Those projects are under lease and licence assessments and they will be subject to a development application process and that's where the public input will be afforded,” Mr Jaesnch said.
Ms Jaesnch said proposals made to date under the EOI process, nine are operational and another 17 are under consideration or in lease and licence negotiations.
There has been a total of 11 proposals for commercial developments in the Tasmanian Wilderness World Heritage Area, he said.
Of those, three proposals have been granted leases and licenses and are operating: a boat operator in Port Davey, a wilderness experience on the Gallagher Plateau and the Maydena bike park. A fourth, a standing camp at Lake Malbena, is not yet operational.
The Expressions of Interest process has come under criticism from some quarters for being secretive and giving developers favourable access to public land.
Mr Jaensch was also questioned about the $65m Cradle Mountain cablecar project.
“Your government is turning Cradle Mountain into Disneyland,” Greens leader Cassy O’Connor said.
“Gimmicky cablecar Disneyland is your characterisation,” Mr Jaensch said.
“With growing visitation to the site we need to come a way to move people into the World Heritage Area without building bigger roads and filling them up with cars and buses — which you hate.”
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