Political Environment? Sender: [EMAIL PROTECTED] X-Loop: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Precedence: bulk MEDIA RELEASE DEATHS IN CUSTODY WATCH COMMITTEE WA) Inc. 207 Beaufort St Perth Western Australia 6000 PO Box 8196 Perth WA 6849 Tel: 61(0)8 9227-5751 Mobile: 041993-0375 Fax: 61(0)8 9227-5593 E-mail: [EMAIL PROTECTED] URL: http://www.deathsincustody.com/ Aboriginal Death In Custody - More of the Same in a New Political Environment? "Last night in Hakea prison a young Aboriginal man took his own life. It must be hoped that this death brings processes to bear that have been wanting over the past decade" said Murray Jones the Chair of the Deaths In Custody Watch Committee of Western Australia. Many questions need to be answered here, but one in particular will certainly be the identification of persons at risk of self-harm, those threatening self harm, and most importantly; the response of the system to these events. Over a decade ago the Royal Commission into Aboriginal Deaths In Custody noted: 'The evidence before the Commission clearly establishes that any person who makes an attempt to commit an act of self-harm or who threatens to do so should be presumed to be at risk'....and...'medically untrained persons such as police and prison officers are not in a position to distinguish between threats or attempts which are genuine and those that are spurious: no attempt or threat to engage in acts of self-harm should be dismissed out of hand.' "The Watch Committee offers its deepest condolences to the family of this man, and we would expect this new government, and its officers, to implement a regime that is infinitely more compassionate than that of the previous government. But not only that, with our shameful history of leading the nation in a per-capita rate of deaths in custody, the prevention of self-harm in custody must be a the top of any list of priorities that the new Attorney General gives to his Ministry of Justice." said Murray Jones. Media Contact: Murray Jones 9265-6668 9265-6644 -- Leftlink - Australia's Broad Left Mailing List mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Archived at http://www.cat.org.au/lists/leftlink/ Sponsored by Melbourne's New International Bookshop Subscribe: mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]?Body=subscribe%20leftlink Unsubscribe: mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]?Body=unsubscribe%20leftlink
