Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples

• Truth and Justice Commission Bill 2024 (Cth)

  26th Sep 2024

• Justice responses to sexual violence

  30th May 2024

• Inquiry into civics education, engagement and participation in Australia (joint ANTAR & ALA submission)

  22nd May 2024

• NDIS participant experience in rural, regional and remote Australia

  6th Mar 2024

• A framework for Voluntary Assisted Dying in the NT

  21st Feb 2024

• Voice referendum result: statement from the ALA

  26th Oct 2023

  The Australian Lawyers Alliance (ALA) acknowledges the grief felt by many Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples in the aftermath of the Voice referendum, which failed to achieve majority support from voters across Australia.

   

• Inquiry into a Process to Review Bills for their Impact on First Nations Territorians

  18th Oct 2023

• Welcome referendum date announcement brings Voice one step closer

  30th Aug 2023

  Today’s announcement of a referendum date is welcome and brings us one step closer to the realisation of a Voice that guarantees the participation of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander representatives in national policy and decision-making processes.

• Inclusivity: Not just a seat at the table

  6th Jul 2023

  ‘Within organisations and the broader community, we are still learning how to have conversations about nationhood, our collective history and so-called “Indigenous issues”.’ While Australia has been struggling with the modest concession proposed by the Voice to Parliament referendum, Nadia Elads has been pondering the meaning of inclusivity, and finding insight in the work of Dr Penny Taylor.

• Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander young people in the justice system

  1st Jun 2023

  The youth justice system in WA is broken, but there are simple solutions, writes Alice Barter of the Aboriginal Legal Service of Western Australia, raising her voice to speak on behalf of young clients at Banksia Hill Detention Centre and Unit 18, who have been ‘unnecessarily criminalised due to trauma, poverty, disability, racism and over-policing’.

• The convergence of tradition and law – cultural fishing and criminal justice

  18th May 2023

  'We must find a timely solution to protect cultural fishing practices and the wellbeing of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, ensure knowledge and customs continue to be shared with younger generations, and ultimately reduce the number of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples in prison,' writes Dion Bull of Stacks Law Firm.

• Bail reform urgently needed but must give full discretion to the courts

  5th Mar 2023

  Victorian Attorney-General Jacelyn Symes proposed bail reforms announced today are welcome but there needs to be wholesale bail law reform says the Australian Lawyers Alliance (ALA).

• Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Legal Services – the key to closing the justice gap

  9th Feb 2023

  ‘Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Legal Services were at the genesis of self-determination, they were the engine room for reform, and they are still the advocates and the protectors of the rights of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples,’ writes Jamie McConnachie.

• Real change and deep listening: In honour of Cassius Turvey

  17th Nov 2022

  Rowena MacDonald, the ALA’s Tasmanian President, spoke in Launceston on Friday 4 November 2022 at a vigil to mark the death of First Nations teenager, Cassius Turvey. She called for urgent change and an end to ‘the racist and discriminatory practices that are still entrenched in our police and criminal justice systems’. These were her words.