SYDNEY: In an alarming move, the government of Queensland, a northeastern state of Australia, has suspended its Human Rights Act for the second time this year, causing deep concern among human rights experts.
The ruling Labor Party pushed through a series of legislative changes last month that allow the indefinite detention of individuals under the age of 18, some as young as 10, in police watch houses. These changes were prompted by amendments to youth justice laws, including the imprisonment of young people for breaching bail conditions, resulting in overcrowding issues in designated youth detention centres.
The amended bail laws, introduced earlier this year, necessitated the suspension of the Human Rights Act, which had been implemented in 2019 to protect children from being detained in adult prisons. The suspension allowed the Queensland government to pass its legislation, a move that has shocked many, including Queensland Human Rights Commissioner Scott McDougall. He emphasized the fragile nature of human rights protections in Australia, highlighting the absence of a National Human Rights Act and the lack of constitutionally entrenched human rights laws at the national level.
McDougall expressed serious concerns about the suspension, stressing that some states and territories in Australia have human rights protections in legislation, but they can be overridden by parliamentary decisions. He pointed out that the Queensland Human Rights Act had to be suspended to enable the passage of legislation facilitating the detention of children in police watch houses.
According to a report by Australia’s Productivity Commission earlier this year, Queensland had the highest number of children in detention compared to any other Australian state, with a daily average of 287 individuals in youth detention during 2021-2022. This figure exceeded the numbers in New South Wales, the most populous state and the second highest in youth detention.
Despite the high cost, over 1,800 Australian dollars ($1,158) per child per day, for detention, more than half of the incarcerated children in Queensland were resentenced for new offenses within a year of their release. Another report released by the Justice Reform Initiative in November 2022 revealed a significant increase of over 27 percent in Queensland’s youth detention numbers within seven years.
The decision to detain children in police watch houses is seen by the Queensland government as a response to the growing number of youth in detention. However, McDougall expressed grave concerns about the potential irreversible harm inflicted on children in such facilities, describing watch houses as stark “concrete boxes” lacking windows and appropriate facilities. He highlighted the detrimental effects on a child’s mental health due to the absence of fresh air and sunlight, as well as the distressing conditions, including visible toilets and extended periods of detention.
McDougall emphasized that an alarming 90 percent of imprisoned children and young people were awaiting trial, emphasizing the high rates of children in detention held on remand in Queensland. These children have not been convicted of any offense, indicating a pressing need for comprehensive reforms to ensure the protection of their human rights and well-being.
