Australia must make remand 'exception' and ban use of spit hoods, UN says
Dec 22, 2023
Sydney [Australia], December 22: The United Nations Committee against Torture has slammed Australia for the "extraordinary number" of people on remand in the country, in a review published on Thursday.
It also called for Canberra to raise the legal age of criminal responsibility in the country, which is currently set at 10, and for the complete ban on spit hoods, the use of solitary confinement on children and the routine strip-searching of people in prison.
The committee said in some of the locations visited, up to 70 percent of the prison population was people on remand. Detention in custody of someone awaiting trial should be "an exception rather than the rule," it said.
The UN committee visited Australia in October 2022 but terminated the visit after being blocked from accessing prisons and mental health facilities in New South Wales and Queensland.
In the report, the committee said it "experienced a discourteous, and in some cases hostile, reception" from a number of government authorities and officials.
"Such behaviour also raises concerns [as it is assumed to be reflective] of how persons deprived of liberty are treated," the report said.
Source: Qatar Tribune
