The Federal Government will spend $48.8m in Central Australia “to tackle crime, keep women and children safe and provide support to young people in communities” according to a media release from Prime Minister Anthony Albanese who visited Alice Springs yesterday.
This is part of the release.
The Australian Government is working in partnership with the Northern Territory Government which will introduce immediate temporary restrictions on alcohol sales including no take-aways on Mondays and Tuesdays.
A Central Australian Regional Controller, Dorrelle Anderson, has been appointed to lead consultation with communities regarding the reintroduction of alcohol restrictions and an opt out system for individual communities. This consultation will conclude by February 1.
Federal spending “to improve community safety” in Alice Springs includes:
- $14.2 in additional funding for extra high visibility police and law enforcement operations including targeting grog running, and increasing liquor licensing compliance inspectors and boosting security guards in public places.
- $2m to improve CCTV, lighting and safety measures throughout Alice Springs.
- $5.6m for additional emergency accommodation and safe spaces to give young people a place to go to at night and boost the effectiveness of the night patrol program which starts in February and will help get young people off the streets.
- $2m for the Tangentyre Women’s Council to boost domestic violence services.
- $25m to extend funding for safety and community services which are currently scheduled to end in June 2023 to provide certainty to providers and their employees and ensure this work continues.
The Australian Government has already targeted investment in Central Australia in the 2022-23 Budget including $99m or First Nations justice measures, says the release.
This includes $81.5m for up to 30 community-led justice reinvestment initiatives across Australia, with Alice Springs identified as a priority site; $19 million for First Nations health infrastructure projects in Central Australia in partnership with the Central Australian Aboriginal Congress.
“This includes funding for the rebuild of the Muṯitjulu Health Service clinic, funding for renovations of the Ltyentye Apurte (Santa Teresa) clinic, and funding for a new health hub in Alice Springs; $20m for Gap Youth Centre and other youth services in Alice Springs; $15m provided to the NT Government under the Family, Domestic and Sexual Violence National Partnership Agreement; $100m for housing and essential services in NT homelands with an immediate boost of $25m and a further $75m allocated in 2023-24.
PHOTO at top: The Gap Youth & Community Centre will get $20m in Federal funding. Facebook image.
UPDATE 4.30pm
NT Chief Minister Natasha Fyles (pictured) has released a statement that said in part:
Alcohol restrictions which will come into effect immediately will be one sale per day per person, alcohol free days on Monday and Tuesday for takeaway purchases limiting hours of alcohol being sold between 3pm-7pm, except for on Saturdays.
These measures will be coupled with an increase in compliance using tools already available, including an on premise BDR blitz.
We have already seen Police push a significant number of people onto the Banned Drinker Register. We know this is a tool that works.
To support those who need it, the Territory Government we will stand up two facilities that families can go to when they are displaced and in need of support services.
This is to ensure we can get these families back on their feet, back to community or into longer term accommodation, and kids back to school.
So more restrictions when a lot of the violence is in response to to many restrictions.
Showing your mates, on Tik Tok, that you can get one up on the police is now a social norm.
We do not need more laws that dumb down people even more. We need more people taking responsibility for themselves.
People working 60 hour weeks to buy bright shiny stuff that makes them feel superior to those around them. This is part of the dumbing down process.
Destroying peoples health by increasing stress, leading them to be less tolerant of others. All that achieves is more people going to the doctor and buying more synthetic drugs to make themselves feel better.
What is so wrong with sitting under a tree and taking a two hour lunch break?
It is the marketing campaigns of multinational companies that force us into a lifestyle that is detrimental to our own health, in turn creating the anger and destruction we see around us.