NT laws to allow police to hold young people for 48 hours will be ‘funnelling Aboriginal children into prisons’, advocates warn

The Northern Territory government has been accused of “funnelling Aboriginal children into prisons” over draft youth justice laws that would give police the power to charge, detain and question young people for up to 48 hours without a legal guardian. Under the proposed amendments to the NT Youth Justice Act, introduced by the corrections minister, Gerard Maley, young people charged with an offence would be able to be held for up to 48 hours in police watch houses, interviewed if they have “knowledge in relation to an offence”, and questioned without an adult present if it is “in relation to a serious and urgent matter concerning public safety”. The draft laws were introduced the day after child protection changes which would replace the Aboriginal Child Placement Principle . Child protection minister, Robyn Cahill, also announced a review into the sector after the death of five-year-old Kumajayi Little Baby in Alice Springs last month. First Nations justice director at the Human Rights Law Centre, Maggie Munn, said the proposed changes to the Youth Justice Act would discriminate against Indigenous children and jeopardise their safety and wellbeing. Munn told Guardian Australia there was “already a crisis unfolding” in NT watch houses, after the territory’s prison watchdog raised concerns about “oppressive conditions including severe overcrowding [and] inhumane toilet access”. …