MEDIA RELEASE
May 9, 2023
Community-led initiative Smarter Justice for Safer Communities welcomes the NT Government’s boost in funding for alternative justice programs as a “step in the right direction” towards stopping the cycle of offending in the Territory.
Smarter Justice for Safer Communities spokesperson Olga Havnen said the NT Budget allocation, although modest, would have a positive impact as it was going into programs that had already been proven to work.
According to budget papers released on Tuesday morning, the NT Government will increase funding to the Northern Territory Aboriginal Justice Agreement by $38.8 million over the next three years, taking the investment in the program to $65 million between 2022-23 and 2025-26.
That includes an additional $15 million towards key initiatives, including expanded Alternative to Custody facilities in Alice Springs and Groote Eylandt, and the establishment of Community Courts and Law and Justice Groups in six communities.
“We know that the existing Alternative to Custody facility in Alice Springs for women has had tremendous results when it comes to rehabilitating offenders and those at risk of offending, with more than three-quarters of the women who have completed the program successfully escaping the cycle of reoffending,” said Ms Havnen, who is also co-chair of the NTAJA governance committee.
“That’s what smarter justice is: investing resources in what we know works and scaling up those successful programs and initiatives so they can reach and support more people who really need it.
“Today’s announcement is a step in the right direction, and we trust that this is just the beginning of a long-term commitment by governments and policymakers in the NT to deal with the challenges we face in the territory, which go beyond the crime rates and include significant generational disadvantage and disengagement afflicting many communities.
“This must be addressed in a smart, sufficient and sustained manner if we are to make our communities safer.”
A recent report released by the Justice Reform Initiative, of which Mr Havnen is a board member, called for a $300 million Breaking the Cycle Fund to boost community-led organisations and projects shown to break the cycle of incarceration, which has contributed to the NT having by far the nation’s highest incarceration rate.
Ms Havnen said she was hopeful that the $24 million flagged to design and deliver new offender programs to stop people becoming trapped in the revolving prison door would align with evidence-based practices.
“At the moment, people who are inside the NTs prisons, whether they be sentenced or on remand, are not receiving the support and services they need to address their offending, which is why we have such high rates of recidivism and a high prison population,” she said.
“The only way to close that revolving prison door is to ensure people have access to drug and alcohol treatment, mental health programs, support to change behaviour, and reintegration strategies to help them avoid future contact with the criminal justice system.”
For more information about Smarter Justice for Safer Communities go to www.smarterjustice.org.au
Media inquiries: Rebecca 0411 790 304
Smarter Justice for Safer Communities is a campaign that grew from the formation of the Northern Territory Aboriginal Justice Agreement – a historic commitment to improve justice outcomes and services for Aboriginal people. Smarter justice starts with acknowledging that the current system, with its overreliance on prisons, is not working. It is about rolling out and ramping up investment in the programs that do work to break the cycle of offending and contribute to safer communities.
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