Australia: Indigenous imprisonment jumps more than 50pc, a health report finds

The Australian Aboriginal community is rife with rape, murder, alcohol-fuelled violence, assault, child sexual molestation - you name the crime and they are top achievers. This problem seems to be getting worse - not better - no matter how much taxes are thrown at the problem. That may just be the clue right there. Maybe if the Australian government admits that this is worsening and money isn't solving it, then maybe the answer is to slowly withhold money and encourage these people to go to work. Kids need to have their bottoms parked on school benches and women need to start respecting themselves. Aboriginal women are 45 times more likely to be the victim of domestic violence than non-Aboriginal women - this stat alone should sound the alarm bells. However, the Australian government's response seems to be the same - form yet another committee to investigate how to deal with the problem it created in the first place. These tax-funded committees usually ask for even more money to be thrown at the problems - because then these committee members are guaranteed a job for years - they know that money isn't the answer, but part of the problem. New imprisonment rates for Aboriginals have been released and - surprise! - the figures are worse than in 2000. Aboriginals comprise 26% of the prison population, yet only represent 2.5% of the population (now, why do these figures ring a bell?). Anyhow, what do these 'human rights' nonsense committees have to say about this? The director of the TAX-FUNDED 'Australians for Native Tile and Reconciliation', Jacqueline Phillips, is outraged  and called on the states and the Federal Government to act immediately to reduce the disproportionate numbers of indigenous people in the prison system. Yes, that's right. It's OUR fault that these people have been incarcerated, because we're racist and therefore the police arrest them disproportionately. It has nothing to do with the fact that they may indeed be guilty of crimes. Nice work! See what I mean about these organisations keeping themselves employed until the second rising? The proper response should be that they are aware of the stats and will work with the community to educate and support them to reduce the crime figures. But, hey, asking people to take personal responsibility has never been a strong point of human rights committees as it's always easier to blame the White man than it is to face a problem head-on and actually solve it.

THE rate of imprisonment for indigenous Australians has jumped by more than 50 per cent in the past decade with inmates now making up a quarter of the prison population, latest figures show.

The report by the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare found the rate increased from 1248 per 100,000 adults jailed in 2000 to 1892 per 100,000 in 2010.

There are almost 7600 indigenous Australians in prisons nationwide making up 26 per cent of the prison population despite representing just 2.5 per cent of Australia’s total population.

"The rate of incarceration is relatively high among Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people," the report said.

"This not only affects the health and wellbeing of those imprisoned, but also of their families and children.

"No such increase was noted among non-indigenous adults."

In Western Australia and South Australia, indigenous Australians were more than 20 times more likely to be jailed than the rest of the population in those states.

The report also revealed that preventable chronic diseases are the main reason indigenous Australians die far earlier than other groups.

Australians for Native Tile and Reconciliation director Jacqueline Phillips called on the states and the Federal Government to act immediately to reduce the disproportionate numbers of indigenous people in the prison system.


"It is simply outrageous that indigenous Australians comprise more than a quarter of all people in prison, when they are just 2.5 per cent of the total population," Ms Phillips said.

"There are initiatives and programs which have been shown to be successful in reducing rates of offending and re-offending, but they are under-funded and piecemeal.

"Governments must divert some of the money currently being spent on building and running prisons to fund programs in disadvantaged communities to reduce offending through a justice re-investment approach."

The report also found that:

• In 2008, nearly half (49 per cent) of all indigenous households were comprised of families with dependent children, more than a third (39 per cent) of which were one-parent families.

• The Year 12 retention rate for indigenous students rose from 31 per cent in 1995 to 45 per cent in 2009.

• Less than two-thirds (65 per cent) of working-age indigenous Australians were in jobs in 2008, compared with nearly four out of five (79 per cent) non-indigenous Australians.

• In 2008, indigenous households were nearly 2.5 times as likely to be in the lowest income bracket and four times less likely to be in the top income bracket as non-indigenous households.

• Nearly half of all indigenous children were living in jobless families in 2006 - three times the proportion of all children.

• Between 1994 and 2008, the proportion of indigenous households who were home owners or buyers rose from 26 per cent to 32 per cent.

• Poor access to public utilities and overcrowded houses remain significant problems, particularly in remote communities.

• One in five indigenous adults reported being a victim of violence.

• In 2008–09, the rate of substantiated child protection notifications for indigenous children was close to eight times the rate for other children.

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