WEBVTT - A Week That Demands a Royal Commission

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<v Speaker 1>Just before nine o'clock last night, the jury returned guilty

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<v Speaker 1>verdicts against all three defendants.

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<v Speaker 2>It was absolutely shambles, to tell you the truth, just

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<v Speaker 2>absolutely really coming.

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<v Speaker 1>Blood on his clothing. The day after the alleged a

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<v Speaker 1>top on a show a mud bank and it fits

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<v Speaker 1>through a river.

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<v Speaker 2>Basically, I think most of the people are used to me,

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<v Speaker 2>there are good people.

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<v Speaker 1>I think a really important question we need to ask

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<v Speaker 1>is how many Indigenous prisoners in Australia are innocent.

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<v Speaker 2>This is Curtain, a podcast where we pulled back the

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<v Speaker 2>blinds to shine a light on the darkest parts of

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<v Speaker 2>our justice system and ask who are the victims.

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<v Speaker 1>I'm Amy Maguire and I'm Martin Hodgson, a senior advocate

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<v Speaker 1>for the Foreign Prisoner Support Service. And a warning, this

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<v Speaker 1>series contains the names of deceased peoples and has distressing

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<v Speaker 1>content that might upset some listeners.

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<v Speaker 2>Welcome to Curtain the podcast. Over the last weekend, my

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<v Speaker 2>co host and I spent more than forty eight hours

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<v Speaker 2>pouring over new information, new documents, and new evidence relating

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<v Speaker 2>to the conviction of Kevin Curtin Henry. And there's a

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<v Speaker 2>lot of very important information in there. And while we've

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<v Speaker 2>gone through it, and we've found out a great deal

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<v Speaker 2>of new things, certainly things that help point to Kevin

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<v Speaker 2>Henry's innocence and also confirm many of the things we've

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<v Speaker 2>discussed in this podcast. We haven't had a chance to

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<v Speaker 2>go over it just enough yet to be able to

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<v Speaker 2>broadcast it to the public. And of course, also you'd

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<v Speaker 2>understand that because some of this information is going to

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<v Speaker 2>be very useful for Kevin Henry in terms of presenting

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<v Speaker 2>it to the parole board and presenting it for his pardon,

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<v Speaker 2>we have to be quite careful what we make public

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<v Speaker 2>at this stage. We will do so in coming weeks.

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<v Speaker 2>So this week I want to talk a little bit

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<v Speaker 2>about what's been going on in the past week or

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<v Speaker 2>two in terms of Aboriginal and to Astraight Islander people

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<v Speaker 2>in custody in Australia. We've seen three reports come out

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<v Speaker 2>in the last few weeks detailing horrific conditions for Aboriginal

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<v Speaker 2>in Torostraight Islanders in prison, and that includes people with

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<v Speaker 2>disabilities and juveniles. We've also had further debts in custody

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<v Speaker 2>that are unexplained and where police action has been completely inappropriate,

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<v Speaker 2>and we've had some new reporting on exactly what is

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<v Speaker 2>happening in Western Australia in the youth detention facility there.

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<v Speaker 2>So this week I thought it was really important that

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<v Speaker 2>we bring those issues further out into the open and

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<v Speaker 2>explain them more. These are things that all really relate

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<v Speaker 2>to what we're trying to do with Curtin, which is

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<v Speaker 2>not only expose the innocence of Kevin Henry and the

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<v Speaker 2>flawed system that's seen him in prison for twenty six years,

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<v Speaker 2>but why this continues to happen. Many people may understand

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<v Speaker 2>why things went so horribly wrong in nineteen ninety one

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<v Speaker 2>and nineteen ninety two when Kevin was arrested and then

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<v Speaker 2>placed on trial. That was the height of the Fitzgerald

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<v Speaker 2>Days in Queensland. Police corruption was rampant, and we know

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<v Speaker 2>from what we've exposed in this podcast so far, there

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<v Speaker 2>is very serious questions to be answered about the police

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<v Speaker 2>actions involved in the arrest and imprisonment of Kevin Henry,

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<v Speaker 2>and we do have some more information on that for

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<v Speaker 2>you in the coming weeks. But unfortunately in twenty eighteen,

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<v Speaker 2>these issues still will continue. Just this week, we've heard

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<v Speaker 2>about a juvenile in Western Australian detention who's been held

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<v Speaker 2>in solitary confinement for the last three hundred and two days. Now,

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<v Speaker 2>almost every international law that relates to solitary confinement rights

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<v Speaker 2>of the child, as well as world's best practice in

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<v Speaker 2>terms of how best to deal with children in detention,

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<v Speaker 2>absolutely goes against the use of any kind of solitary

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<v Speaker 2>confinement or these sort of harsh punishment methods. They are

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<v Speaker 2>breaches of basic human rights. But for a child to

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<v Speaker 2>be imprisoned in solitary confinement for three hundred and two

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<v Speaker 2>days is absolutely disgraceful. And again, Western Australia has had

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<v Speaker 2>more than its fair share of problems. As many people

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<v Speaker 2>will know, mister an Aboriginal elder died while in a

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<v Speaker 2>prison van in Western Australia. His death was brutal and horrific,

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<v Speaker 2>and yet no one is in prison as a result.

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<v Speaker 2>We also know about what happened to missed You, dying

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<v Speaker 2>in custody for unpaid fines. We know the way the

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<v Speaker 2>police treated her was absolutely appalling, serious crimes against humanity,

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<v Speaker 2>and not a single officer charged or imprisoned over her death.

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<v Speaker 2>And from that same state we now have a young

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<v Speaker 2>boy in prison in what the government is trying to

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<v Speaker 2>claim is an intensive support unit, but is really solitary confinement.

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<v Speaker 2>And this young boy has been stripped of many rights

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<v Speaker 2>that detainees should have. That includes deprivation of family contact

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<v Speaker 2>and education. How is this child supposed to rehabilitate without

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<v Speaker 2>education and family contact? Excessive use of force and disproportionate restraints. Now,

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<v Speaker 2>this is exactly what we saw going on in Dondale

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<v Speaker 2>in the Northern Territory. We've all seen the pictures and

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<v Speaker 2>videos of what was done to Dylan Volla and the

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<v Speaker 2>other boys in Dondale and that resulted in a royal commission.

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<v Speaker 2>The fact that it's going on in Western Australia and

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<v Speaker 2>more obviously in every other state in this country means

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<v Speaker 2>we need a Royal commission not only into juvenile justice,

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<v Speaker 2>but into the entire prison system. And I'll give more

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<v Speaker 2>evidence for that as the podcast goes along. This child

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<v Speaker 2>has also been subjected to degrading treatment in a war situation.

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<v Speaker 2>If Australia was handling prisoners of war, these would be

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<v Speaker 2>crimes against the Geneva Convention. And yet this is being

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<v Speaker 2>done to a young child in detention in Western Australia.

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<v Speaker 2>There's also been a serious lack of medical treatment for

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<v Speaker 2>this child, including psychological care. And one thing that we

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<v Speaker 2>do know about solitary confinement is that it absolutely worsens

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<v Speaker 2>a person's medical and quite obviously psychological condition at a

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<v Speaker 2>very very fast rate. Peer reviewed reports and journals have

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<v Speaker 2>shown that in as little as forty eight hours a

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<v Speaker 2>drastic impact on someone's psychological wellbeing can take place. And

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<v Speaker 2>this is with adults who are not suffering any mental

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<v Speaker 2>health issues at the time. So for a child who

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<v Speaker 2>may have these, and we believe they do, to be

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<v Speaker 2>in solitary confinement for three hundred and two days nearly

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<v Speaker 2>a full year, is absolutely disgraceful and the West Australian

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<v Speaker 2>government needs to fix this asap and WA Corrections must

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<v Speaker 2>release this young boy into the general population of the

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<v Speaker 2>prison immediately. Now. Just as disturbing in Western Australia is

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<v Speaker 2>some further information that's come out about the Banksy Hill

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<v Speaker 2>Juvenile Detention Center, and there's been a study and it

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<v Speaker 2>was done by a medical institute by a number of

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<v Speaker 2>leading professors in the field, and it has been published

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<v Speaker 2>in the peer reviewed medical journal BMJ Open, which is

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<v Speaker 2>also then peer reviewed by the largest database of medical

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<v Speaker 2>journals on the planet. And this is what this peer

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<v Speaker 2>reviewed science has found about West Australia's Banks Hill Juvet

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<v Speaker 2>Nile Detention Center. That nine out of the ten young

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<v Speaker 2>people assessed were suffering at least one form of severe

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<v Speaker 2>brain impairment. That's ninety percent of the children have at

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<v Speaker 2>least one form of severe brain impairment. The medical term

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<v Speaker 2>is a neurodevelopmental impairment and it's on the severe end

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<v Speaker 2>of the scale. Now, to compound that, sixty five percent

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<v Speaker 2>of these young people, these are all people under the

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<v Speaker 2>age of eighteen, had three or more forms of these

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<v Speaker 2>severe brain impairments. Sixty five percent, twenty three percent had

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<v Speaker 2>five or more severe brain impairments. Now, this is not

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<v Speaker 2>kids just making things up. This is not just small

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<v Speaker 2>issues that these children are facing. They were assessed by

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<v Speaker 2>medical professors whose work was then peer reviewed by other

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<v Speaker 2>highly qualified medical professionals before it was allowed to be

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<v Speaker 2>published first in this journal BMJ Open and then more

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<v Speaker 2>widely around the globe. And it's the sort of work

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<v Speaker 2>that is accepted by the Surgeon General in the United

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<v Speaker 2>States as being absolute fact. Now it should come as

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<v Speaker 2>no surprise, sadly that seventy four percent of these children

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<v Speaker 2>are Aboriginal males. Despite being only two percent of the population,

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<v Speaker 2>seventy four percent of Aboriginal males have these disabilities, and

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<v Speaker 2>rather than being cared for, are in prison. One of

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<v Speaker 2>the other issues which we've spoken about previously in this

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<v Speaker 2>podcast is the issue of fetal alcohol spectrum disorder or

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<v Speaker 2>faz D. And there's been a number of experts who

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<v Speaker 2>Amy's spoken to and written about over the years, and

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<v Speaker 2>I'll provide some links to their works that have been

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<v Speaker 2>saying this for decades, that a large number of those

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<v Speaker 2>in custody, especially children, but adults as well, are suffering

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<v Speaker 2>from faz D. These young people never had a chance.

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<v Speaker 2>They need medical care, not imprisonment. Now, I want to

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<v Speaker 2>remind you that again, seventy four percent of these young

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<v Speaker 2>people with these severe brain injuries and brain impairments that

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<v Speaker 2>are in custody are between the ages of ten and

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<v Speaker 2>seventeen years old. Ten and seventeen, These are children. Now,

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<v Speaker 2>this is the highest incidence of FASD ever discovered in

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<v Speaker 2>a population in the world. These are young people who

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<v Speaker 2>need a great deal of not only medical care, but

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<v Speaker 2>family and psychological support and of course educational support. Is

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<v Speaker 2>it any wonder that they're in prison when they haven't

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<v Speaker 2>been provided these things. But here's what's most startling is

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<v Speaker 2>that the vast bulk of these children had never been

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<v Speaker 2>properly medically assessed. That means the children themselves and their

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<v Speaker 2>parents had no idea their children were suffering these conditions,

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<v Speaker 2>and the State of Western Australia has decided, rather than

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<v Speaker 2>provide them with the care they need, where they should

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<v Speaker 2>be in their communities, with their families, in school and

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<v Speaker 2>being looked after, they're being locked in jail. Now we

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<v Speaker 2>can understand why children suffering such severe medical conditions would

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<v Speaker 2>often act out, and perhaps it's inappropriate social behavior small theft.

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<v Speaker 2>These are not children who have committed major crimes. The

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<v Speaker 2>young people suffering neurodevelopment impairments that are very very serious,

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<v Speaker 2>and yet they are being held in a juvenile detention

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<v Speaker 2>center that quite frankly resembles a maximum security prison. And

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<v Speaker 2>what these medical professionals are recommending is that these young

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<v Speaker 2>people should not be in prison, that what they really

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<v Speaker 2>need is, as I've just said, the support and care

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<v Speaker 2>of their community and the government. The professors were heavily

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<v Speaker 2>critical of almost every department, from health, Education, Justice, child

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<v Speaker 2>protection and everyone who intervenes in these children's lives. These

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<v Speaker 2>are the departments and the people who work for them

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<v Speaker 2>who are supposed to help these children, but instead they

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<v Speaker 2>throw them in jail, and they throw seventy four percent

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<v Speaker 2>of them are young Aboriginal boys between ten and seventeen.

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<v Speaker 2>This is an absolutely racist policy by the Western Australian

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<v Speaker 2>government and it targets Aboriginal children who need medical care

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<v Speaker 2>and not imprisonment. And once again we need people to

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<v Speaker 2>step up and call on the Western Australian government to

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<v Speaker 2>release these children, and not only just release them, but

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<v Speaker 2>to ensure that they undo the damage that they've done

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<v Speaker 2>to these young people. This cannot be allowed to continue.

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<v Speaker 2>If that wasn't bad enough, international organization Human Rights Watch

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<v Speaker 2>released a new report less than two weeks ago, and

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<v Speaker 2>it deals with prisoners in Australia who have a disability,

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<v Speaker 2>and this is adult prisoners, male and female, right around

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<v Speaker 2>the country and they spoke to one hundred and thirty

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<v Speaker 2>six former and current prisoners with disabilities from fourteen prisons

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<v Speaker 2>around Australia. Of those one hundred and thirty six they

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<v Speaker 2>spoke to, forty one reported experiencing physical violence at the

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<v Speaker 2>hands of not only fellow prisoners but also staff, and

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<v Speaker 2>thirty two described being sexually assaulted by either fellow prisoners

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<v Speaker 2>or staff. Now, this is around twenty percent of those

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<v Speaker 2>disabled prisoners who were sexually assaulted in prison. Again, a

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<v Speaker 2>lot of these people were, no surprise, Aboriginal people. Once again,

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<v Speaker 2>the racist system in this country where the incarceration rates

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<v Speaker 2>of Aboriginal people are criminally high. And as we've discussed

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<v Speaker 2>previously on this podcast, there's a lot of reasons for that,

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<v Speaker 2>and I won't go into them right now because we

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<v Speaker 2>have been over them before. But clearly, when you incarcerate

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<v Speaker 2>Aboriginal people at a criminal level, when courts, police and

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<v Speaker 2>governments are not only just failing Aboriginal people but locking

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<v Speaker 2>them up either innocent people, people with mental health conditions, disabilities,

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<v Speaker 2>people are being failed by legal centers and legal practices

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<v Speaker 2>who are not defending them in an appropriate manner nor

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<v Speaker 2>anywhere near the level that should be required of a

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<v Speaker 2>proper defense. And here we have disabled people not just

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<v Speaker 2>slipping through the cracks and finding themselves in prison where

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<v Speaker 2>for the most part they're being incarcerated for quite minor crimes.

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<v Speaker 2>They are now being on top of the disability they

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<v Speaker 2>also already face on top of being in prison for

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<v Speaker 2>often trivial matters, now they are being physically and sexually abused,

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<v Speaker 2>both by fellow inmates and worse by staff. A senior

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<v Speaker 2>nurse assigned to a prison told Human Rights Watch that

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<v Speaker 2>six of the eight current prison careers in their facility

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<v Speaker 2>will convicted sex offenders. So these are people assigned to

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<v Speaker 2>look after disabled people in the prison, sex offenders who

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<v Speaker 2>are then going on to perpetrate sex crimes inside prison,

0:18:17.280 --> 0:18:21.280
<v Speaker 2>and they are targeting vulnerable people like those with disabilities.

0:18:24.440 --> 0:18:28.280
<v Speaker 2>What we also learned from this report is because prisons

0:18:28.400 --> 0:18:32.920
<v Speaker 2>often aren't equipped to deal with those who are suffering

0:18:33.240 --> 0:18:37.000
<v Speaker 2>with disabilities. Let's remember that the broader society and broader

0:18:37.040 --> 0:18:40.399
<v Speaker 2>community is not doing a good job at all in

0:18:40.480 --> 0:18:44.800
<v Speaker 2>assisting those with disabilities. That's why we needed the NDS,

0:18:45.320 --> 0:18:49.840
<v Speaker 2>And sadly, the rollout of the NDIS has been full

0:18:49.960 --> 0:18:54.680
<v Speaker 2>of problems and the horror stories continue for those suffering

0:18:54.720 --> 0:18:59.760
<v Speaker 2>with disabilities and their families. And yet we're finding Aboriginal

0:18:59.760 --> 0:19:03.359
<v Speaker 2>peace people with disabilities, and people from the general community

0:19:03.359 --> 0:19:08.280
<v Speaker 2>with disabilities in jail. And what this report showed is

0:19:08.400 --> 0:19:11.520
<v Speaker 2>that the inability of prisons to care for these people

0:19:11.560 --> 0:19:17.359
<v Speaker 2>adequately meant that up to thirty percent of the disabled

0:19:17.400 --> 0:19:22.639
<v Speaker 2>prisoners reported having been placed in solitary confinement for a

0:19:22.680 --> 0:19:27.200
<v Speaker 2>considerable period of time, and nearly all of those who

0:19:27.200 --> 0:19:30.800
<v Speaker 2>were spoken to by Human Rights Watch had been placed

0:19:30.840 --> 0:19:36.119
<v Speaker 2>in solitary confinement at some point during their incarceration. Now,

0:19:37.840 --> 0:19:40.240
<v Speaker 2>what has occurred with a number of these people who

0:19:40.320 --> 0:19:46.080
<v Speaker 2>spoke to Human Rights Watch is, in addition to their disability,

0:19:46.960 --> 0:19:54.480
<v Speaker 2>they've come out of prison with new conditions, most notably

0:19:54.600 --> 0:19:59.480
<v Speaker 2>post traumatic stress disorder, and many are still suffering severe

0:19:59.600 --> 0:20:05.560
<v Speaker 2>bouts of anxiety, depression, flashbacks, and a whole range of

0:20:05.600 --> 0:20:08.479
<v Speaker 2>mental illnesses that they now have to deal with on

0:20:08.640 --> 0:20:16.000
<v Speaker 2>top of their current disability. Post Traumatic stress disorder is

0:20:16.000 --> 0:20:19.760
<v Speaker 2>something that is developed generally in a response, as the

0:20:19.840 --> 0:20:25.879
<v Speaker 2>name would suggest, to a very traumatic incident. We know

0:20:26.000 --> 0:20:30.359
<v Speaker 2>this occurs when people return from war, people who have

0:20:30.440 --> 0:20:36.280
<v Speaker 2>been sexually assaulted, those who have been physically assaulted, women

0:20:36.320 --> 0:20:41.240
<v Speaker 2>who have been continually abused via family violence, and young

0:20:41.359 --> 0:20:44.480
<v Speaker 2>children who suffer the same. And this is being done

0:20:44.520 --> 0:20:52.359
<v Speaker 2>to vulnerable people by the state in prisons. A prisoner

0:20:53.560 --> 0:20:57.399
<v Speaker 2>reported this to Human Rights Watch about the particular prison

0:20:57.480 --> 0:20:59.800
<v Speaker 2>they were in and Human Rights Watch was able to

0:20:59.840 --> 0:21:04.520
<v Speaker 2>say speak to a senior psychologist who was in charge

0:21:04.600 --> 0:21:10.520
<v Speaker 2>of dealing with this person. This senior psychologist conceded that

0:21:10.560 --> 0:21:15.000
<v Speaker 2>the prison and the prison staff often struggled to deal

0:21:15.040 --> 0:21:21.879
<v Speaker 2>with people with disabilities, and that the custodial staff hadn't

0:21:21.880 --> 0:21:26.359
<v Speaker 2>been trained and weren't equipped to deal with both complex

0:21:26.400 --> 0:21:31.080
<v Speaker 2>mental health issues and other disability behaviors. And so what

0:21:31.280 --> 0:21:36.000
<v Speaker 2>ends up happening is solitary confinement becomes the last resort,

0:21:36.560 --> 0:21:43.119
<v Speaker 2>and this contributes to severe harm to these prisoners. Once again,

0:21:43.560 --> 0:21:47.920
<v Speaker 2>we have governments asleep at the wheel, totally ignoring what

0:21:48.080 --> 0:21:54.600
<v Speaker 2>is being done to prisoners who were disabled, an aboriginal torrestrate, islander, men,

0:21:54.680 --> 0:21:59.000
<v Speaker 2>women and children who are over incarcerated and being abused

0:21:59.359 --> 0:22:03.800
<v Speaker 2>inside prison. The very people who are supposed to uphold

0:22:03.840 --> 0:22:08.520
<v Speaker 2>the laws and watch those who are supposedly criminals are

0:22:08.560 --> 0:22:14.040
<v Speaker 2>committing heinous crimes against some of society's most vulnerable people.

0:22:16.240 --> 0:22:18.760
<v Speaker 2>If ever, there was a case for a royal commission,

0:22:19.160 --> 0:22:22.119
<v Speaker 2>what we've spoken about in this podcast so far today

0:22:22.760 --> 0:22:29.399
<v Speaker 2>lays that out very clearly, as our listeners will know

0:22:29.640 --> 0:22:32.600
<v Speaker 2>when we've spoken about this on the podcast before. But

0:22:32.640 --> 0:22:35.720
<v Speaker 2>of course, many of you know this already because it

0:22:35.800 --> 0:22:38.719
<v Speaker 2>is such a big issue in the Indigenous community. Is

0:22:38.760 --> 0:22:42.280
<v Speaker 2>that we already have had a Royal commission into Black

0:22:42.320 --> 0:22:45.359
<v Speaker 2>deaths in custody that also looked at the treatment of

0:22:45.400 --> 0:22:51.280
<v Speaker 2>Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in prison. And sadly,

0:22:51.400 --> 0:22:53.760
<v Speaker 2>as we call for a new Royal commission into the

0:22:53.800 --> 0:22:57.960
<v Speaker 2>way all our prisons are run, we have to report

0:22:58.000 --> 0:23:02.520
<v Speaker 2>that in the last few weeks there's been further deaths

0:23:02.560 --> 0:23:08.840
<v Speaker 2>in custody. In Townsville, a young man who was being

0:23:08.880 --> 0:23:15.280
<v Speaker 2>detained in his thirties by police became unconscious, as the

0:23:15.320 --> 0:23:20.040
<v Speaker 2>police would say, after he was taken into custody. And

0:23:20.080 --> 0:23:23.800
<v Speaker 2>this was very shortly after he'd been taken into custody,

0:23:24.640 --> 0:23:29.560
<v Speaker 2>and sadly, any attempt at the hospital to save this

0:23:29.640 --> 0:23:35.719
<v Speaker 2>man's life were unsuccessful and he passed away. How does

0:23:35.800 --> 0:23:41.120
<v Speaker 2>someone come into contact with police and then in mere

0:23:41.240 --> 0:23:46.119
<v Speaker 2>seconds be unconscious and then die from those injuries, and

0:23:46.200 --> 0:23:49.359
<v Speaker 2>yet not a single one of these police officers have

0:23:49.480 --> 0:23:55.160
<v Speaker 2>been charged, even with assault. People don't just drop dead

0:23:55.200 --> 0:23:59.280
<v Speaker 2>for no reason. This man died in the hands of

0:23:59.320 --> 0:24:05.480
<v Speaker 2>police in mere moments. Once again, all we've had is

0:24:05.520 --> 0:24:09.760
<v Speaker 2>a commitment that there'll be a coronial inquest. Well, there's

0:24:09.800 --> 0:24:13.320
<v Speaker 2>been coronial inquests into virtually every one of the four

0:24:13.400 --> 0:24:18.399
<v Speaker 2>hundred deaths in custody that Aboriginal in Torrestrate Islander people

0:24:18.440 --> 0:24:21.359
<v Speaker 2>have suffered in the last twenty five years, and not

0:24:21.440 --> 0:24:26.280
<v Speaker 2>a single police officer has been charged and convicted. Are

0:24:26.320 --> 0:24:30.679
<v Speaker 2>we seriously meant to believe that Aboriginal people simply just

0:24:30.800 --> 0:24:34.920
<v Speaker 2>dropped dead for no reason? Now, this wasn't the only

0:24:34.960 --> 0:24:41.840
<v Speaker 2>death in custody. Three days apart from the incident in Townsville,

0:24:41.920 --> 0:24:46.560
<v Speaker 2>a young Aboriginal man was being chased by police. This

0:24:46.760 --> 0:24:50.679
<v Speaker 2>was a young man known to police who was suffering

0:24:50.800 --> 0:24:57.199
<v Speaker 2>from health and mental health issues. Despite knowing this, the

0:24:57.280 --> 0:25:00.840
<v Speaker 2>police kicked a door in and chased the young man.

0:25:02.600 --> 0:25:06.960
<v Speaker 2>He fell from the thirteenth floor of a multi story

0:25:07.040 --> 0:25:15.479
<v Speaker 2>building and tragically passed away. This once again highlights the

0:25:15.520 --> 0:25:21.040
<v Speaker 2>police's total inability and failure to deal with issues such

0:25:21.080 --> 0:25:25.359
<v Speaker 2>as mental health and disability, and their complete lack of

0:25:25.440 --> 0:25:29.280
<v Speaker 2>regard for the life of Aboriginal entres Strait Islander people's.

0:25:30.640 --> 0:25:34.760
<v Speaker 2>If this was anyone else, a mental health team would

0:25:34.760 --> 0:25:38.760
<v Speaker 2>have been assigned to take care of the incident, but

0:25:38.920 --> 0:25:42.600
<v Speaker 2>instead the police kicked in the door. They acted like

0:25:42.640 --> 0:25:46.440
<v Speaker 2>a swat team. This was not a murderer they were

0:25:46.440 --> 0:25:49.840
<v Speaker 2>going after. This was not someone who had committed a

0:25:49.880 --> 0:25:53.560
<v Speaker 2>series of bank robberies. This was a young Aboriginal man

0:25:54.400 --> 0:25:58.720
<v Speaker 2>who was no doubt suffering issues and it is believed

0:25:58.800 --> 0:26:03.439
<v Speaker 2>had been taking illicit substances that would of course caused

0:26:03.520 --> 0:26:08.679
<v Speaker 2>him to panic even further. And yet, rather than handle

0:26:08.720 --> 0:26:12.400
<v Speaker 2>this in the delicate manner police are supposed to protect

0:26:12.480 --> 0:26:16.960
<v Speaker 2>and serve the community, they chased this man to his death.

0:26:18.000 --> 0:26:23.640
<v Speaker 2>Just three days Apart from police having an Aboriginal man

0:26:23.960 --> 0:26:28.359
<v Speaker 2>die in their hands, how did he just die? Why

0:26:28.520 --> 0:26:33.520
<v Speaker 2>was this young man chased to his death? And there's

0:26:33.560 --> 0:26:36.200
<v Speaker 2>been other debts in custody in the last two weeks

0:26:36.240 --> 0:26:41.640
<v Speaker 2>that for cultural reasons, we won't discuss in this episode.

0:26:41.800 --> 0:26:45.440
<v Speaker 2>But again it highlights what's going on in this country.

0:26:46.320 --> 0:26:50.879
<v Speaker 2>And yet we hear nothing from the ministers responsible. The

0:26:50.960 --> 0:26:54.880
<v Speaker 2>Minister for Indigenous Affairs Nigel Scully, and gave a lengthy

0:26:54.920 --> 0:26:59.600
<v Speaker 2>interview to the ABC just two days ago, these issues

0:26:59.680 --> 0:27:03.560
<v Speaker 2>were not touched on once. He spent the first half

0:27:03.640 --> 0:27:07.600
<v Speaker 2>of that lengthy interview speaking to the nation talking about

0:27:07.640 --> 0:27:12.200
<v Speaker 2>the leadership of his own political party, and he was

0:27:12.280 --> 0:27:16.399
<v Speaker 2>backing Barnaby Joyce, who has now been sacked, who is

0:27:16.480 --> 0:27:22.680
<v Speaker 2>now facing claims of sexual misconduct, above and beyond everything

0:27:22.680 --> 0:27:25.639
<v Speaker 2>else he's been caught up in. Now these are just

0:27:25.680 --> 0:27:29.560
<v Speaker 2>allegations at this stage we have to stress. But why

0:27:29.640 --> 0:27:33.320
<v Speaker 2>is the Minister for Indigenous Affairs spending half of a

0:27:33.400 --> 0:27:38.879
<v Speaker 2>national address that's nearly thirty minutes long defending someone in

0:27:38.960 --> 0:27:42.280
<v Speaker 2>a position of power accused of these things and not

0:27:42.400 --> 0:27:47.240
<v Speaker 2>speaking out about the consistent and constant death of Aboriginal

0:27:47.280 --> 0:27:50.800
<v Speaker 2>people for absolutely no reason at the hands of police

0:27:51.280 --> 0:27:55.399
<v Speaker 2>and correctional officers, The abuse of Aboriginal and Torrestrait Island

0:27:55.400 --> 0:27:59.440
<v Speaker 2>to people in prison with disabilities, the abuse of Aboriginal

0:27:59.480 --> 0:28:02.760
<v Speaker 2>and Tostras Made Islander children as young as ten who

0:28:02.800 --> 0:28:07.000
<v Speaker 2>are being placed in solitary confinement, and the sexual and

0:28:07.080 --> 0:28:11.480
<v Speaker 2>physical assault of Aboriginal and Terrestraight Islander children in prison.

0:28:12.440 --> 0:28:17.119
<v Speaker 2>This demands a royal commission. But more than that, it

0:28:17.200 --> 0:28:23.360
<v Speaker 2>demands swift action. Any day a child, an innocent person,

0:28:23.560 --> 0:28:27.879
<v Speaker 2>a vulnerable person is in prison one day more than

0:28:27.960 --> 0:28:33.000
<v Speaker 2>they need to be, is damaging their life forever. And

0:28:33.040 --> 0:28:36.879
<v Speaker 2>for those who have passed away, they cannot be brought back.

0:28:37.880 --> 0:28:42.040
<v Speaker 2>Next week could very well bring more deaths in custody,

0:28:43.040 --> 0:28:46.600
<v Speaker 2>and yet these will be needless deaths. They won't happen

0:28:46.680 --> 0:28:50.640
<v Speaker 2>to anyone but Aboriginal and Terrestraight Islander people. And yet

0:28:50.680 --> 0:28:54.440
<v Speaker 2>those in charge of the welfare of Aboriginal Interrostraate Islander

0:28:54.440 --> 0:29:01.680
<v Speaker 2>people around this country remain deathly silent. Next week we'll

0:29:01.720 --> 0:29:06.520
<v Speaker 2>have more damning evidence against those involved in putting Kevin

0:29:06.560 --> 0:29:11.840
<v Speaker 2>Henry falsely behind bars, an innocent man. But until that time,

0:29:12.080 --> 0:29:15.280
<v Speaker 2>I ask you all to reflect on exactly what's going

0:29:15.320 --> 0:29:18.280
<v Speaker 2>on in this country and why the media and politicians

0:29:18.600 --> 0:29:22.760
<v Speaker 2>are not doing their job in fixing these issues immediately.

0:29:24.400 --> 0:29:27.320
<v Speaker 2>If you'd like to help us continue our work, please

0:29:27.360 --> 0:29:31.440
<v Speaker 2>consider supporting us through Patreon, which is on our website

0:29:31.520 --> 0:29:36.600
<v Speaker 2>at www dot Curtin the Podcast dot com, and you

0:29:36.640 --> 0:29:40.640
<v Speaker 2>can also find us on Facebook and Twitter at Curtin

0:29:40.720 --> 0:29:41.400
<v Speaker 2>the Podcast