Advocates for children across the country have called on the Northern Territory government to halt its proposed child protection reforms, warning the legislation could undermine the rights and wellbeing of Aboriginal children.
Last week, the Country Liberal Party (CLP)-led parliamentary committee seemingly ignored evidence and expert advice and recommended controversial child protection laws — introduced after the tragic death of five-year-old Kumanjayi Little Baby in April — be passed. This, despite 120 of the 150 submissions calling for the legislation to either be scrapped or substantially amended.
The proposed legislation removes the legal enforceability of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Child Placement Principle (ATSICPP) — designed to ensure children removed from their families maintain connections to family, community and culture — so that it only applies "as far as practicable," as well as capping protection orders at two years in favour of permanency placements.
In a 3-2 split, the CLP-led committee recommended the bill be passed, with support largely coming from the Northern Territory Police Association, the Australian Christian Lobby, the Foster and Kinship Carers Association of the Northern Territory, and Liberal Senator Jacinta Nampijinpa Price. The committee's two non-government members opposed the recommendation.
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On Tuesday, the Australian Children's Commissioners, Guardians and Advocates (ACCGA) urged the NT Government to pause the bill in its current form, as per the submissions of numerous organisations to the parliamentary committee — arguing it "risks repeating structural failures that can lead to the tragic loss of a child".
"The Bill's amendments to remove rights-based language when it comes to decision-making about our kids does not remove their intrinsic rights as part of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child," National Commissioner for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Children and Young People, Sue-Anne Hunter, said.
"Our children are rights-holders, inheritors of cultural knowledge and leaders and experts in their own right — this should be front and centre when it comes to policies that impact their lives."
As part of a policy shift canvassed for more than a year, the CLP Government in May announced amendments to the Care and Protection of Children Act, arguing a new "Universal Principle" will "for the first time" establish child safety "as the primary consideration, placing the best interests of every child first, regardless of background".
Despite its intent, only 17 per cent of First Nations children aged 0-17 in out-of-home care in the NT were placed with an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander relative or kin — the lowest rate in the country.
ACT Public Advocate and Children and Young People Commissioner, Jodie Griffiths-Cook, said the ATSICPP should be holistically applied when it comes to the safety and wellbeing of a child and "not treated as a hierarchy that fails to prioritise a child's connection to their identity".
"Under the new legislation, there is a greater risk that children in the NT would be separated from family, culture and community, on a pathway towards permanent care," she said.
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The parliamentary committee's decision to recommend the passing of the bill resulted in NT Child Commissioner Shahleena Musk — a Larrakia woman and former crown prosecutor — resigning from her role, citing concerns about the Territory Government's approach to governance, transparency and child protection reform.
She warned of a declining commitment to transparency, accountability and evidence-based decision-making in the Northern Territory, saying it risked undermining public confidence in government institutions.
"Public confidence in our institutions depends on openness, meaningful consultation and a willingness to test policy proposals against available evidence," she said. "Where these principles are diminished, the quality of decision-making and public trust are inevitably affected."
The ACCGA said they were "deeply concerned by the circumstances" that led to Ms Musk's resignation.
"All commissioners, guardians and advocates have a legislated responsibility to hold governments to account on matters relating to the wellbeing of our children and young people," they said in a statement.
Minister for Child Protection Robyn Cahill argued that if Ms Musk "will not put children's safety ahead of everything else, then it is right that they move on".
"If Ms Musk were genuinely concerned about this, then the last thing she would be doing is walking away," Ms Cahill said in a statement. "My focus has never wavered. Every Territory child deserves to be safe, and that is the test I apply to every decision I make."
