The extension of the youth curfew in Mparntwe/Alice Springs has attracted criticism as advocates fear it will do nothing to help alleviate the underlying issues it attempts to resolve.
On Tuesday, the NT government extended the original 14-day curfew for all people under 18 until 6am on April 16 to coincide with the end of the school holidays, with Chief Minister Eva Lawler calling it a "common sense" approach.
Ms Lawler told reporters anecdotal evidence from Mparntwe/Alice Springs' residents was that the curfew was the "best thing that has happened" to the town, and some Indigenous groups and politicians, including the Central Australian Aboriginal Congress and Minister for Aboriginal Australians Linda Burney, backed the curfew in its original form, labelling it a necessary "circuit breaker".
The issue of violence in Mparntwe/Alice Springs was thrust back into the public spotlight at the end of last month during a series of violent confrontations in the wake of the death of 18-year-old eastern Arrernte man Kumanjayi Petrick in a car accident, which resulted in the NT government enacting the curfew as well a highly visible police presence.
Opposition to the curfew has come from legal and human rights groups, including Amnesty International Australia and NATSILS, who labelled it a "knee-jerk" response unlikely to help the long-term issue of youth crime in Central Australia.
On Wednesday, the North Australian Aboriginal Justice Agency (NAAJA) and the Human Rights Law Centre (HRLC) both criticised the decision to extend the curfew, arguing it would "disproportionately impact Aboriginal children and their families".
"Evidence shows that any engagement with the police, including transport by police in police vehicles, can cause harm to children," NAAJA and HRLC said in a joint statement.
"The imposition of the curfew risks the needless harm of contact with police and does nothing to address the underlying issues it is attempting to resolve."
NAAJA principal legal officer Jared Sharp reiterated the organisation's concern to the curfew, arguing it was "not a productive way forward".
"As we said previously, the NT is facing significant challenges when it comes to crime and offending and we need evidence-based solutions with an eye on the longer term – intensive support programs, diversion, education, and related services – not knee-jerk reactions and Band-Aid policies," Mr Sharp said.
Special counsel at HRLC Nick Espie said the government must listen to the community and rather than subject children to curfew and police interactions, "properly resource solutions and support services that would address community safety in Alice Springs".
He said these included: "community-led housing, education, employment and other services that support families to thrive in their communities".
"More police powers are never the solution. It enables members of NT Police to further target Aboriginal children and collectively punish them based on the actions of a few," Mr Espie said.
He reiterated calls for the NT government to move away from a 'tough on crime' mantra, arguing a "brave" government would support community-led solutions that were proven to work.
The ABC reported on Wednesday some locals have called for the measures to be applied indefinitely, whilst the Northern Territory opposition have called for the curfew to remain in place until the end of April to gather data to assess its effectiveness.
It is believed the number of "interactions" with police have dropped since the curfew was introduced, and as of Monday, there had been no arrests for curfew breaches.
