The United Nations Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination has expressed serious concern over the persistent overrepresentation of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children in Australia’s criminal justice system. The Committee warned that the situation reflects systemic and structural racial discrimination affecting Indigenous communities across the country. (ohchr.org)
According to information reviewed by the Committee, Indigenous children accounted for approximately 65 percent of children in detention during 2023–24, despite representing only 6.5 percent of Australia’s child population aged between 10 and 17 years. The Committee stated that racial profiling, over-policing, and discriminatory law enforcement practices continue to contribute to disproportionately high incarceration rates among Indigenous youth.
The Committee also highlighted broader inequalities faced by Indigenous communities, including limited access to education, healthcare, housing, and social protection services. It noted that these social and economic disadvantages, combined with discriminatory practices within the justice system, continue to deepen the marginalization of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children.
Concerns were further raised regarding Australia’s minimum age of criminal responsibility, which in several states and territories remains below international human rights standards and can be as low as 10 years old. The Committee criticized laws allowing harsh adult penalties, including life imprisonment in certain cases involving children.
The UN body additionally expressed alarm over detention conditions experienced by Indigenous children, including prolonged solitary confinement, ill-treatment, inadequate healthcare, the use of spit hoods, and reported cases of self-harm and suicide. Human rights organizations supporting the complaint described the findings as evidence of ongoing institutional racism within Australia’s youth justice systems.
While acknowledging measures introduced by Australia, such as the National Commission for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Children and Young People and the National Justice Reinvestment Program, the Committee stated that there is insufficient evidence showing these initiatives are effectively reducing Indigenous overrepresentation in detention.
The Committee urged Australia to intensify efforts to eliminate racial discrimination in the administration of criminal justice, review potentially discriminatory laws and practices, prohibit racial profiling by law enforcement agencies, and improve detention conditions in line with international human rights standards.
