New federal Shadow Minister for Indigenous Australians Kerrynne Liddle says she hopes the Northern Territory Government will act on the coroner's recommendations following the death of 19-year-old Kumanjayi Walker, particularly in improving community policing, youth support, and mental health services.
"Everyone should be saddened by what the coroner has found," Senator Liddle said, while also calling for federal accountability, noting the Commonwealth's "significant" investment in Northern Territory policing and services.
On Monday, Coroner Elisabeth Armitage handed down her findings into the fatal 2019 police shooting of Mr Walker in Yuendumu, describing his death as "avoidable."
The coroner criticised former NT Police officer Zachary Rolfe's conduct and described the NT Police Force as exhibiting "hallmarks of institutional racism."
Mr Rolfe, who shot Mr Walker three times during a failed arrest, was found by the coroner to be racist and operating within a toxic police culture. He was acquitted of all charges in 2022.
Speaking on ABC RN, Senator Liddle — who was appointed to the Coalition's frontbench in May — welcomed the breadth of Judge Armitage's inquiry.
"She looked comprehensively at some of the drivers and protective factors that will support people to ensure that this does not happen again," Senator Liddle said.
"That is a really important part of this, and it is for the Northern Territory Government to look very closely at the findings, because they are in charge in the territory of the police and protective services.
"But the Commonwealth does have a role to play, because the Commonwealth will often fund the drivers of those things, the protective factors that the coroner also talked about."
Amongst Judge Armitage's findings, she highlighted Mr Rolfe's contempt for women and "bush police". Senator Liddle said she is a "huge supporter of community policing" and said several of the report's recommendations had stood out to her.
"She [the coroner] talked about all sorts of things," Senator Liddle said.
"A plan for youth, she talked about mental health service delivery, she talked about a better complaints mechanism. All of those things are really, really important to empower people to speak up sooner and to be heard sooner. And I hope the Northern Territory Government is listening."
Judge Armitage's recommendation of a 30 per cent Indigenous make-up in the NT Police force was welcomed, but Senator Liddle said there "needs to be a proper strategy" to make it work.
"You just can't say, 'here's an opportunity for work.' You have to make sure that the environment that they're coming into is conducive to sustaining their employment and their contribution, which will be critical to supporting police officers and the people that they actually sign up to serve," she said.
She argued the Commonwealth have given a "significant amount of money" to the NT Police via the Northern Territory Government over the last few years, asking: "How are you actually deploying that money?"
"And what's the prioritisation of the deployment of that money? It has to be, 'get on with the stuff that's already in place now. Get on with the stuff that is going to get a faster response.'"
At the federal level, she said it was crucial that the Commonwealth carefully review the report.
"We have to focus on the Commonwealth's role in funding the things that provide the drivers and that support the drivers and the protective factors for people," Senator Liddle said.
Referring to the Labor Government's recent $300 million funding package for Central Australia, she questioned how much had reached the communities who need it most.
"One of the complaints I had was, 'what about the remote communities?' How much of that money was distributed to remote communities to support and empower those remote communities? That's a really important part of making sure that people are stronger in raising these issues."
Federal Minister for Indigenous Australians Malarndirri McCarthy said on Monday that addressing deaths in custody must rise "above politics." While admitting there were areas where she and the Minister agree and don't agree, Senator Liddle said she believed they both are "committed to ensuring that every death in custody is investigated, that at every opportunity these things are responded to".
"But it is also important; what do we do to make sure that the Commonwealth role is clear and that we actually make sure that the programs that we are currently funding or that we would fund into the future will actually ensure better outcomes for people?" she said.
"Making sure that those services that are provided are delivering as effectively as they can possibly deliver, and that the people who need it most actually have access to those services.
"Not just that they're available, but they can actually access them, because people in remote communities have additional barriers, including barriers of language.
"We need to get the kids in school, we need to get kids off the street, because they provide important protective factors for intervention with children and with families."
