'It would be a scandal': NT government accused of hiding youth prison from UN
Human rights lawyers have condemned the Northern Territory government's decision to lock the United Nations out of Darwin's youth prison and questioned what it is trying to hide.
The United Nations' Special Rapporteur on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, Albert Barume, claims the Northern Territory government has refused to allow him to visit its Holtze Youth Detention Centre. This decision has been met with criticism from human rights lawyers, who argue the government is attempting to avoid scrutiny of practices that conflict with Australia's international human rights obligations.
The NT opposition notes the Country Liberal Party government should explain what it is concealing, but has not committed to permitting a visit if returned to power. The refusal is not the first time; the government blocked UN access to the NT jail twice in the past year.
Darwin barrister John Lawrence SC asserts the government has "a lot to hide," suggesting a UN inspection could expose embarrassing conditions and potential legal issues for the government. Indigenous children constitute nearly all of the youth detention population in the NT on any given day. According to the ABC, multiple incidents occurred at Holtze Youth Detention Centre in the 12 months following its opening in November 2024, including self-harm hospitalizations, sexual assaults, detainee-on-detainee assaults, escapes, and a hunger strike.
The 2024-25 NT children commissioner's annual report detailed extended lockdowns and excessive use of force.
The Department of Corrections maintains a visit is not being facilitated, stating NT prisons are already subject to independent oversight and accountability arrangements. However, Human Rights Law Centre senior lawyer Sohini Mehta disagrees, questioning why the government would not open doors if there were nothing to hide. The international human rights system and independent scrutiny exist because governments are not to be trusted.
Mehta highlights that First Nations people, disproportionately incarcerated, face cruel, inhumane, and degrading practices like solitary confinement and strip searches. Children as young as 10 are incarcerated at Holtze, and spit hoods, linked to preventable deaths in custody, have been reintroduced by the current government.
UN inspectors, previously blocked from NT jails, criticized Australia's treatment of prisoners in a December report. Amnesty International Australia Indigenous rights advisor Rodney Dillon stated his organization documented practices falling well below international human rights standards. The NT Labor opposition condemns the denial of UN access to Holtze but remains undecided on committing to a visit if returned to power.
While the Human Rights Law Centre suggests withholding funding to force the Territory to provide access, Attorney-General Michelle Rowland stated the decision to engage with the Special Rapporteur is a state and territory matter. Barume plans to visit Canberra, Adelaide, Broome, Darwin, the Torres Strait Islands, Townsville, and Sydney.
Written by urgent.news from ABC News AU's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
