Media Release - Governments must act on Indigenous over-incarceration report

“Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people are unacceptably over-represented in Australia’s prison populations,” said Dr Matt Collins QC, President of the Victorian Bar.

“The imprisonment rate for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people is 12.5 times higher than the rate of imprisonment for non-Indigenous people — 20 times higher for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women, and Indigenous youth are 16 times more likely than their non-Indigenous counterparts to be under youth justice supervision.

“The Australian Law Reform Commission’s Pathways to Justice report made a range of recommendations aimed at addressing Indigenous over-incarceration. It is important that all levels of government work together urgently to enable real, effective and sustainable progress to be made.”