A federal parliamentary committee reports that young Aboriginal boys are 28 times more often detained by police than young whites.

What to do?

The committee has made 40 suggestions — better police training, programs to get children attending school, detecting indigenous children with impaired hearing, mentoring programs etc.

These have all been tried before.                                                                  

Will we have any better luck now than in the past?

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In 2007, the Howard government introduced the so-called “Northern Territory Intervention”, hoping to overcome Aboriginal community social problems.

The policy included “dry areas”, quarantining welfare payments, compulsory residential drug and alcohol rehabilitation, banning pornography — plus more police.

$1.36 billion was earmarked to be spent over three years.

$3 million per day.

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The Intervention was torpedoed by the media, by and large, condemning it . . . .

Which encouraged some indigenous leaders to stir up indignation against it – with talk about “genocide” etc.

Others were more constructive, pointing out that, while the Intervention was not perfect, it’s worth persevering with – and improving as we go along.

Warlpiri elder, Bess Price, for example, had supported the introduction of the Intervention, saying: “My people don’t use money the way white people do. They don’t save . . . they can’t say no to relatives even when they are drunks and addicted . . . They need help in spending their money wisely.”

Recently she has defended the results of the Intervention: “I’ve seen progress . . . children being fed and young people more or less know how to manage their lives.”

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The chief handicap to the Intervention doing more good has been. . . .

Guess what?

Youth workers, like Blair McFarlane, point out repeatedly that things won’t really improve unless ALCOHOL consumption is reduced.

Our governments, however, have displayed consistent lack of political will to take on the Territory’s alcohol retailers.