The Queensland Government faces calls to withdraw its ‘circuit breaker’ legislation, which critics say is a return to the much-criticised “youth boot camps” of the past. National Commissioner for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Children and Young People, Sue-Anne Hunter, has urged the government to abandon the bill, saying it’s a “failure of care” towards those it targets.
Hunter’s concerns are shared by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice Commissioner Katie Kiss, who believes children sent to residential facilities under the new laws will be “out of sight, out of mind”.
The ‘circuit breaker’ program is being sold as an alternative to imprisonment, but critics argue it’s essentially a form of detention by another name. Children can be ordered to leave their homes and communities to live in residential facilities, potentially in rural or remote areas, for months at a time.
The program has been allocated $80 million over four years.
There are concerns that the program will disproportionately affect Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children, who are already over-represented in the youth justice system.
The idea of removing children from their families and communities is not new in Australia. For generations, governments have justified the removal of Aboriginal children from their families, claiming it was for their own welfare. However, this has led to significant harm and trauma for these children and their communities.
The ‘circuit breaker’ program raises similar concerns, with critics arguing that it’s a form of removal by another name. The program’s focus on discipline and control, rather than support and rehabilitation, has also been criticised.
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Rather than investing in the ‘circuit breaker’ program, some argue that the government should be focusing on addressing the underlying causes of youth crime, such as poverty, homelessness, and lack of access to education and mental health services. Investing in community-controlled services, intensive family support, and accessible disability and mental health services could be a more effective way to reduce youth crime and improve community safety, including through NDIS reforms.
It’s also important to consider the long-term effects of removing children from their families and communities. Electronic monitoring and strict routines may not provide the support and care that these children need, and may even exacerbate the problems they’re experiencing.
There are also concerns about the lack of accountability and scrutiny in the ‘circuit breaker’ program. The program’s operation will be left to regulation, including matters relating to suitability, providers, and locations. The Youth Justice chief executive will have significant discretion in determining whether a child is suitable for the program.
The scheme can also apply to offences allegedly committed before the legislation commences, which has raised concerns about the retrospective impact on children’s rights and liberties.
$80 million could build safe housing, Aboriginal community-controlled services, intensive family support, accessible disability and mental health services, community-controlled healing programs, education that refuses to discard difficult children, long-term youth work, support for families experiencing poverty, and safe places children can voluntarily go when home is not safe.
These are not soft responses, but the difficult and unglamorous infrastructure of genuine safety. They require governments to invest in children before a crisis rather than waiting until a child can be characterised as dangerous enough to justify another coercive intervention.