Marcia Langton, a leading Indigenous academic who has studied rates of child rape and prostitution in the far northeast of Western Australia, has backed moves by the state’s Police Commissioner to ban the sale of full-strength alcohol in the region.
A confidential report by Professor Langton and colleagues from the University of Melbourne describes “the shocking extent, gravity and normalisation of violence for the Indigenous community” in the region that takes in the towns of Wyndham, Kununurra and surrounding Aboriginal communities.
Child rape and child prostitution were increasing but unreported in Kununurra, according to residents, Aboriginal people and service providers who gave evidence about the harm caused by alcohol in the region.
The report is among documents provided by WA Police Commissioner Chris Dawson to WA director of liquor licensing Lanie Chopping as proof that the Kimberley is in crisis and that severe blanket restrictions are necessary. Ms Chopping is taking responses from licensees until July 2022 before making a decision.
Mr Dawson wants bottle shops across the entire Kimberley banned from selling full-strength alcohol. His stance has pitted him against the McGowan government for more than two years. WA Premier Mark McGowan has repeatedly said he prefers a banned drinkers register, which is being trialled in the Kimberley.
Professor Langton, who has worked with the commonwealth government and 51 other prominent Australians to design a proposal for the Indigenous voice, believes Mr Dawson is justified.
“All the evidence points to the conclusion that the Police Commissioner has arrived at. I must agree with him,” she said.
“The alcohol industry must not be allowed to profit from the social disadvantage and circumstances in remote Western Australia. The industry has lost the argument about socially responsible drinking because the enormous costs in lives taken or irreparably damaged by alcohol and alcohol-fuelled violence are not justifiable.”
The researchers relied on police data and interviews with 66 residents, health workers, lawyers and other service providers during four field trips between November 2018 and May 2019.
“Many community members and service providers disclosed incidences of rape, sexual abuse and child prostitution in Kununurra. It was also reported that these types of incidents have increased in recent years and regularly go unreported and undisclosed,” the report states. The report found the severity of fami
... keep reading on reddit ➡South Australia’s state co-ordinator, Police Commissioner Grant Stevens, has tested positive for Covid-19 @theTiser
https://www.barandbench.com/news/legal-notice-hyderabad-police-commissioner-search-mobile-phones-drugs?s=09
IFF needs your support, now more than ever. Details at the end of this post.
tl;dr
We assisted Mr. Srinivas Kodali, an independent privacy researcher, in drafting and sending a legal notice to the Hyderabad Police Commissioner, when we learned that Hyderabad Police is stopping random passers-by on the roads, and going through their phones. News videos clearly showed police personnel asking people to unlock their phones and hand it over to police officials. The police officials then admittedly searched the phones for keywords such as ‘ganja’, ‘weed’ and ‘stuff’. This is a clear and blatant abuse of police power, and is entirely illegal.
Background
A video news report published by Siasat Daily showed clear video images of patently illegal actions being committed by officers of the police force on and about October 27, 2021 in and around Mangalhat, Dhoolpet, Bhoigudakaman, and Jumeraat Bazaar. The video showed that the police were stopping pedestrians, motorcycle and auto rickshaw drivers and riders and bystanders without any reasonable suspicion of having committed/being involved in the commission of an offence. The police then demanded access to mobile phone devices, and thereafter proceeded to search the contents of such mobile devices including searching private messaging applications.
The police officials admitted to making people unlock their phones
A police officer was also interviewed by Siasat Daily team, where the police officer stated that he is stopping random passers-by and checking their mobile phones, and in cases where any messages with keywords “ganja”, “weed” and “stuff” are found, the persons are being sent to the police station. In the video, the police officials are seen stopping passersby indiscriminately without any basis and without communicating any reasons for inspection of their phones. He stated that five teams were carrying out such inspections in three shifts of 6 AM to 2 PM, 2 PM to 6 PM, and 6 PM to 2 AM, and that this exercise has been taking place for approximately one month and may go on for another month.
It was reported by The News Minute that every police station has been instructed to ask
... keep reading on reddit ➡
