The Northern Territory government is being urged to immediately stop young people being held in solitary confinement at the Don Dale youth detention centre.
On the eve of a preliminary hearing of the NT Royal Commission into the Protection and Detention of Children, the Human Rights Law Centre, Amnesty International and the National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Legal Services say they have received reports that young people continue to be held “in conditions amounting to solitary confinement” at Don Dale’s high security unit.
In a statement on Monday night, the three organisations called on the NT government to immediately prohibit the use of solitary confinement, introduce an independent inspector of youth detention to prevent abuse, and “meaningfully engage” with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities and organisations.
Amnesty International’s indigenous rights campaigner, Julian Cleary, said human rights law prohibits the use of solitary confinement on children for any duration, because evidence shows that it can cause permanent psychological harm.
The three groups say both the federal and NT governments should ensure children in detention are not exposed to mistreatment while awaiting the royal commission’s recommendations.
Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull initiated the royal commission in July after ABC Four Corners aired graphic footage of indigenous offenders being stripped naked, tear-gassed and held in solitary confinement for weeks at the Don Dale centre in 2014 and 2015.
