Children over the age of 14 accused of violent crimes will face adult courts and receive adult sentences in Victoria, after controversial new laws aimed at increasing the number of children sent to prison passed the state's parliament.
The Victorian Government's Adult Time For Violent Crime legislation passed parliament on Thursday, just days after being introduced and less than a month after being announced.
Under the Justice Legislation Amendment (Community Safety) Bill, crimes including home invasion, carjacking, armed robbery, and recklessly causing injury in circumstances of gross violence will be subject to the new conditions.
The government says the changes will significantly increase the likelihood of a jail sentence and the maximum length of those jail sentences for youth offenders.
While insisting the legislation is urgently needed, the state's Attorney-General, Sonya Kilkenny, has admitted it would be "in part" incompatible with the state's charter of human rights.
"The measures in the Bill constitute significant limits on the fundamental rights of children who are by their nature a vulnerable cohort," she said in her statement of compatibility to parliament.
"While it is my strong view that the Bill is necessary to address compelling and pressing community safety concerns ... my acknowledgement of incompatibility accepts the inherent difficulty in meeting this high standard of justification."
Aboriginal community condemns new laws
The bill has drawn sharp criticism from First Nations and legal advocacy groups, including the from the state's top advocate for Aboriginal children.
The Victorian Commissioner for Aboriginal Children and Young People, Meena Singh, has told NITV the new laws are short sighted.
“I’m not seeing a lot of evidence behind this legislation," the Yorta Yorta woman said.
"What concerns me the most is how dismissive it is of children and young people’s capacity for rehabilitation - we’re essentially saying these children are beyond hope, and if we’re saying that we’re saying our systems aren’t working."
Ms Singh argued the laws do not address the root causes of violent youth offending.
Once they come out, they’re not going to have the skills to reintegrate into community.
"We see so many children and young people who are in youth justice systems who have had experiences as victims of family violence, so they’re seeing violence used against them in a really personal way in what is supposed to be the safety of their home," she said.
"If we’re not addressing what it means to be a victim … then we’re leaving too many children to see violence as a viable option.
"We’re committing children as young as 14 to possibly 15 years or more in prison.
"We’re going to be institutionalising these children and once they come out, they’re not going to have the skills to reintegrate into community."
Meanwhile, the Victorian Aboriginal Legal Service (VALS) has condemned the laws as "abhorrent".
"This festive season, while other kids will be opening up their presents with their families at home, our young people will be behind bars," said Nerita Waight, the chief executive of VALS.
"The Premier has stated time and time again that she is listening to victims and that is why they are ramming through these laws, however she is actively ignoring Aboriginal communities, who have suffered state sanctioned violence and harm for 237 years of the colonial project."
In a statement released earlier in the week, Negar Panahi, the principal managing lawyer of VALS youth legal practice Balit Ngulu, said children deserve better.
"This government’s policy response is cruel, it’s inhumane and it’s a moral failure. The state has a duty of care, and they are failing dismally," she said.
The Victorian Equal Opportunity and Human Rights Commission also expressed "deep concern" over the laws, highlighting their inconsistency with international human rights standards on the treatment of children.
Commissioner Ro Allan warned harmful impacts of the legislation may be felt long into the future.
“These changes are unlikely to reduce crime in the long term but are likely to have a significant impact on First Peoples, racialised communities and children with mental health issues who are already overly represented in our detention centres," they said.
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