The National Network is horrified, yet unsurprised, by the damning report released by the NSW Ombudsman, which highlights the cruel and inhumane treatment of prisoners, treatment tantamount to torture. ‘The report exposes the brutality of the prison system, and their wilful failure to follow legislative and policy requirements, leading to unjust outcomes and potentially unlawful decisions. The findings on solitary confinement are particularly alarming—74% of those placed in solitary confinement are vulnerable, 42% are Aboriginal, and many live with disabilities,’ said Debbie Kilroy.
‘This report confirms what we have been saying for so long: prisons are violent places where officers wield their power with impunity, and nothing changes if nothing changes. We must stop pretending that prison officers and the system they operate within are not violent, punitive institutions that routinely punish and torture the people they cage and contain,’ said Debbie Kilroy. ‘This is business as usual. And news flash: it’s not just happening in NSW. This systemic abuse is present across the country, in both adult and children’s prisons,’ said Debbie Kilroy.
‘While corrections officials may point to officer training and legislative reviews as the solution, we know this is not the answer. There is a deeply embedded culture of violence in prisons because they are, by design, places of exile and punishment,’ said Tabitha Lean. ‘More training for officers will not solve this issue. What the NSW Minister for Corrections needs to seriously consider is innovative decarceration strategies that liberate people from these cages. The urgent cessation of solitary confinement, particularly for vulnerable and Aboriginal people, must be prioritised,’ said Tabitha Lean.
‘It is no coincidence that NSW refused entry to the United Nations Subcommittee on the Prevention of Torture (UN SPT) during their visit to Australia last year,’ said Tabitha Lean. The subcommittee suspended its tour after being denied access to detention facilities in NSW and Queensland, a decision that led to the extraordinary termination of the visit. ‘NSW knew their prisons were sites of torture and abuse, and they took deliberate steps to prevent this reality from being exposed on the world stage,’ said Tabitha Lean.
‘The National Network call on all governments to allow the UN SPT full access to all Australia’s prisons. It is essential that the international community bears witness to the gross breaches of human rights occurring within these institutions, and that we hold these facilities accountable for the torture they inflict on people in their care,’ said Tabitha Lean.
‘The time for incremental change is over. Decarceration and the abolition of inhumane practices like solitary confinement are the only path forward if we are to stop this cycle of violence,’ said Debbie Kilroy.
For further comment, please contact Debbie Kilroy on 0419 762 474 or Tabitha Lean on 0499 780
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