Barry Wakelin (Grey, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is addressed to the Minister for Families, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs. Would the minister inform the House of recent measures to tackle sexual abuse and violence in Indigenous communities and to improve health and school attendance amongst Aboriginal children?

Mal Brough (Longman, Liberal Party, Minister Assisting the Prime Minister for Indigenous Affairs) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank the member for Grey for his question and also for meeting us up at Mimili in the APY lands over the weekend, where we opened a new swimming pool. The No School, No Pool federal government policy is operating there, resulting, the principal tells me, in over 80 per cent child attendance at the school—which is a great step forward. I want to congratulate the principal for the strong leadership he is showing in that community, using this Commonwealth funded pool to have good health outcomes and good educational outcomes for the children in the APY. While we were up there, I also announced that the federal government would extend another $2.5 million to roll out a total of three pools in the region because of the success that has been demonstrated by the Mimili community.

At the same time, the unfortunate reality is that there have been young people who have succumbed to substance abuse in that region, as they have in other parts of Australia, so we have extended by $1.1 million the rehabilitation facility. This brings to a total of $3.3 million the Commonwealth expenditure for rehabilitation and for housing of appropriate staff in that region so that these people can stay where they are, be fully rehabilitated and become active members of their community.

Earlier on Saturday I was over the border in the Northern Territory, also in Pitjantjatjara lands, in the community of Mutitjulu, where I opened the new police station. This involved almost $2 million of Commonwealth funding. We all understand in this place that policing is a state and territory responsibility, but the reality is that the Territory has a lot of areas that do not have sufficient numbers of police. So the federal government, after being requested by the Territory government to be involved, came to the party. I think it is worth reminding the House where the request originally came from. It was back in 2004 that negotiations got under way which ultimately saw this police station being opened yesterday. Back then the Chief Minister of the Northern Territory, Clare Martin, wrote this about the Mutitjulu community in a memo of 26 November to her police minister:

Social dysfunction surrounding the substance abuse epidemic is resulting in significant human rights abuses: self-harm, violence against others, sexual abuse and child neglect. Children as young as five have contracted STDs, and young girls are being prostituted for petrol. Two-thirds of young children are malnourished and underdeveloped.

That is an intolerable situation in any Australian community. The federal government recognises that and will work in a collaborative and positive way with any state and territory government to stamp out that sort of abuse of young Australians. The Mutitjulu Police Station will go some way towards rectifying that problem.

I will add that what disappoints me is that the two police officers are Aboriginal community police officers; they are not sworn police officers. They have had nine weeks training. That means they have come straight from training to a very difficult post. I would encourage the Northern Territory government to reconsider that and acknowledge that normal police practice is to put young constables, who are on probation, who are sworn constables, with senior, experienced people. That is not occurring there and I think it is absolutely paramount that we assist these young people, who I have met and who I think are of the highest possible calibre, to be able to do their job by having the benefit of having experienced police officers with them.

There is much more to be done. The federal government has committed $130 million from the summit into sexual violence and abuse in these remote communities. We want to see a better future for Aboriginal children, men and women in these remote communities, and we have put the money on the table to make that a reality.

John Howard (Bennelong, Liberal Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr Speaker, I ask that further questions be placed on the Notice Paper.