Bush courts handled critical legal work, which is now under serious threat, despite the recently signed Aboriginal Justice Agreement. The Northern Territory Legal Aid Commission stopped taking new clients in remote communities in April 2022, when remote circuit courts were suspended due to Covid-19.
Defendants must represent themselves if the North Australian Aboriginal Justice Agency (NAAJA) cannot.
Bush courts are due to return, but when they do and NAAJA has a conflict of interest, such as already representing a victim, witness, or defendant, it is obliged to refer people to another legal service. This would normally be Legal Aid.
This denial of legal rights means the fundamental human right to legal representation is breached.
The steady defunding of community-based mediation services
Mediators play an essential role in helping defuse conflicts in the community. After the Community Justice Centre was defunded in the Territory budget for 2022, there are now concerns that the Northern Territory could become the only jurisdiction in Australia without a community mediation service. Mediators and social workers say that the Centre's role is significant in preventing family and community disputes from escalating to the courts. The Centre also helps Territorians gain skills to resolve conflicts peacefully.
Arresting offenders does not address the boredom or the disadvantage that leads offenders to offend. Arrests alone will not reduce crime. Crime is here to stay unless we respond to the root causes of why offenders take to our streets. The lack of diversion programs in remote communities because there are no remote providers is of great concern.
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