Tuesday 19th of March 2024

a childish royal commission into the black...

a soft judge...

PM Malcolm Turnbull has undermined his newly established inquiry into NT youth detention before it has even begun through an outrageously inappropriate appointment, writes Indigenous affairs editor Natalie Cromb.

THE Turnbull Government had nowhere to turn after the ABC's Four Corners program aired footage demonstrating the degree of abuse experienced by children in Darwin's Don Dale Youth Detention Centre in August 2014 and, accordingly, indicated he would be going down the path of a royal commission.

The prime minister called his Indigenous Affairs Minister Nigel Sculion on the day it aired to render the gratuitous “please explain”, but the minister indicated the matter hadn't "piqued" his interestenough to watch the documentary at the time it aired on Monday nght. And following a predictably woeful response from the Northern Territory Government, there was little choice for Turnbull — he had to follow through with his promise to pursue a royal commission into the whole deplorable and disgusting affair.

Clearly, this was a begrudging decision if there ever was one, because, let’s face it, the Government is far from concerned with the human rights of Australia’s First Peoples. So, by setting up a "quick and dirty" royal commission, Turnbull found a way to get his clap on the back from White Australia, whilst simultaneously sending an undeniable message to Aboriginal Australia.

Excellent profile of juvenile detention royal commissioner by @callapillahttps://t.co/10j6UvJl2B

— Lenore Taylor (@lenoretaylor) July 29, 2016

The clear message for Indigenous Australian came in the appointment of Brian Martin QC to head up the Commission.

And who is Brian Martin?

Well, according to white rightwing Australia, Martin is a distinguished former chief justice of the Northern Territory Supreme Court (2004 to 2010), as well a former Supreme Court judge in South Australia — one who became more widely known after presiding over the internationally known Falconio trial.

Ask Aboriginal Australia, however, and the story will be very different, because in 2010 Brian Martin presided over the infamous trial of five white youths, who committed a vicious hate murder of an Aboriginal man in Alice Springs. In the middle of the night, after joyriding around the Todd River as Indigenous people lay sleeping, recklessly endagering scores of people, they then brutally bashed and kicked one man, Kwemetyaye Ryder, into unconsciousness as he lay on the ground — the killing blow coming from a broken bottle over the back of the head.

Despite the horrific nature of the crime, Northern Territory Supreme Court Justice Brian Martin QC described the youth as

“.... of otherwise good character.”

Brian Martin wasn't recommended for #NTRoyalCommission
Brandis found him under a rock

Via @whaddyareckon #auspol pic.twitter.com/3YxI7RZ6Ri

— Tim Jones (@Forthleft2) July 28, 2016

The murderous youths had their charge downgraded to manslaughter and the judge considered the crime at the "lower end" of the scale of manslaughter, handing down sentences of between one and four years. A man was remorselessly murdered, but because he was Aboriginal, his life was worth just 12 months.

All because, in this country, you can be racist, and hateful, and murderously violent, but still be considered of “good character” — so long as your victims are black, of course!

Appointing Brian Martin QC is Malcolm Turnbull’s way of sticking the knife in to Aboriginal Australia. He is perturbed at needing to deal with a national scandal and inconvenienced by the need for a royal commission, but he wants to make sure that we all know how he feels about an impartial and thorough investigation. The Commission hasn't even started, but the fix is already in.

Like all royal commissions concerning Aboriginal people, this one will run its course, White Australia will have its guilt assuaged and nothing – nothing at all – will change for Indigenous Australians.

That is not justice. It is tyranny.

Natalie Cromb is indigenous affairs editor and a proud Gamilaraay woman. You can follow Natalie on Twitter @NatalieCromb.

 

Read more: https://independentaustralia.net/australia/australia-display/turnbull-sends-stark-message-to-aboriginal-australia-through-brian-martin-appintment,9295

 

meanwhile in white's own torture country...

 

The Northern Territory government is suing two boys who were allegedly abused at the Don Dale detention centre for more than $200,000, alleging the boys damaged the detention centre in two escape attempts in the 12-months after being teargassed in August 2014.

The prime minister, Malcolm Turnbull, announced a royal commission into Northern Territory juvenile detention on Thursday, after ABC’s Four Corners program revealed footage of a boy hooded and restrained in detention.

The program showed footage of six children being teargassed at the detention centre on 21 August 2014, prompting wide public condemnation.

All six have filed suits against the NT government for their treatment at Don Dale, alleging that the teargassing incident, and other occasions when they were handcuffed or shackled, amounted to battery.

The NT government has denied in all cases that it is vicariously liable for the actions of corrections officers.

The Northern Australian Aboriginal Justice Agency (Naaja), which is acting for four of the boys, filed amended statements of claim with the supreme court in Darwin in June.

Court documents seen by Guardian Australia show the NT government responded to two of the writs with a counter-claim, alleging two of the boys, whose identities are subject to a suppression order, participated in subsequent “riots” at the centre, which caused “significant damage”.

https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2016/jul/29/nt-government-countersuing-boys-allegedly-abused-in-juvenile-detention

 

Update (2 hours later):

The NT Chief Minister's office says the Government has withdrawn counter claims made against two detainees who were tear-gassed in the Don Dale Youth Detention Centre.

The Government lodged claims for damages from an escape attempt in Don Dale against two of the detainees involved in the tear-gassing incident shown on Four Corners.

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-07-29/nt-government-withdraws-counter-claims-against-don-dale-detainee/7673600

 

blaming the messenger...

Adam Giles has suggested lawyers who exposed abuse in the Northern Territory’s Don Dale youth detention centre could have been politically motivated, asking: “How many lawyers on the Four Corners show were members of the Labor party?”

The Northern Territory’s chief minister made the comment during a debate with territory Labor MP Natasha Fyles on Darwin’s Mix 104.9FM on Friday morning, but swiftly denied he was attempting to politicise the issue.

“I’m not making suggestions, I’m trying to focus on the kids,” he said. “When I get attacked about politics when I’m trying to do the right thing by fixing the system, I’m going to fight back.”

He also confirmed he had seen footage of six teenage boys being sprayed with teargas in Don Dale’s behavioural management unit before it was shown on Four Corners, but said: “The first I’d seen of any footage before we came to government was on Monday night.

“I had seen the footage of the gassing component before because that was in our time of government – it has been referred to police, it has been in media,” he said. “But any of the footage before we came to government I hadn’t seen.”

The prime minister, Malcolm Turnbull, announced a royal commission in response to shocking footage shown on the program, which depicted children in detention being assaulted, sprayed with teargas and, in one instance, hooded and shackled to a chair.

The lawyer Peter O’Brien, who acts for Dylan Voller, an Indigenous boy reportedly subject to incidents of physical abuse at the hands of guards at the territory’s youth detention centres between 2010 and 2015, dismissed suggestions the allegations were political.

read more: https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2016/jul/29/adam-giles-suggests-lawyers-who-spoke-to-four-corners-had-political-motives

brandis disgustingly out of touch...

Indigenous leaders in the Northern Territory say they are “completely and utterly disgusted” that they were not consulted before the details of the royal commission into youth detention were announced, saying the commission has already lost all credibility.

The attorney general, George Brandis, said he spoke to the Indigenous social justice commissioner, Mick Gooda, and that the prime minister, Malcolm Turnbull, spoke to the head of his Indigenous advisory body, Warren Mundine, before the terms of reference were announced on Thursday.

“The fact we didn’t hold some endless public seminar with any number of groups to talk about what should have been in the terms of reference is hardly the point,” Brandis said.

Olga Havnen, deputy chair of the Aboriginal Medical Services Alliance NT (Amsant), said Brandis’s comments were “completely disingenuous”.

Amsant issued a joint statement with the other peak bodies, the Northern and Central Land councils, on Friday, saying the royal commission had already “comprehensively failed us”.

“We could easily have done that consultation in a very timely and well-organised fashion,” Havnen told Guardian Australia.

Restricting Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander consultation to Gooda and Mundine, she said, was meaningless.

“Well for goodness sake, what do they know about the Northern Territory?” she said. “They don’t live here, they are not involved in any of this. He may as well have walked down the street and asked two people.”

read more: https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2016/jul/29/indigenous-leaders-disgusted-they-were-not-consulted-on-detention-inquiry

foooking idiot turdball...

 

Northern Territory juvenile detention centre royal commissioner Brian Martin has resigned less than a week after being appointed by Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull.

The former judge was appointed last Thursday, with Mr Turnbull citing his tenure as Northern Territory chief justice as key to his suitability for the role.

Mr Martin, who was approached for the role by the Federal Government, said he had contacted the Governor-General requesting he be removed from the role.

Mr Martin said his resignation was his own decision and was not a criticism of Mr Turnbull, nor Attorney-General George Brandis.

"My resignation does not imply that I doubt my capacity to be both independent and competent in the role of the commissioner, nor does it imply that I accept that there is or would be a reasonable apprehension of bias," he said.

"Quite unnecessarily, my family has been drawn into the debate.

read more: http://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-08-01/brian-martin-stands-down-from-royal-commission/7677400

Not only Tony Abbott was the el primo minister for fucups, but it's seems it's catching... Does Turnbull believes he won't fed to the wolves by his own staff or advisors? 

Australia IS A VERY SIMPLE COUNTRY TO MANAGE. Why do we get dorks like Abbott and Turnbull to imbecillically rule the effing place? What did we do to deserve such idiots who parade as peacocks bereft of feathers looking like basted Xmas turkeys?