Latest / 360 with Katie Woolf / Central Australian Aboriginal Congress CEO Donna Ah Chee has welcomed alcohol reforms and a $250 million funding boost for services in Alice Springs

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Central Australian Aboriginal Congress CEO Donna Ah Chee has welcomed alcohol reforms and a $250 million funding boost for services in Alice Springs · 360 with Katie Woolf

• 0:00
  Speaker 1: There's been a lot of discussions so far this morning
• 0:02
  Speaker 1: about the announcement made by the Northern Territory government yesterday.
• 0:05
  Speaker 1: What we know is that alcohol bands are going to
• 0:07
  Speaker 1: be reinstated across the Northern Territory, preventing the sale of
• 0:11
  Speaker 1: alcohol to people living in town camps and remote communities.
• 0:15
  Speaker 1: The Northern Territory Chief Minister yesterday, well, she did cave
• 0:18
  Speaker 1: to what has been mounting pressure amid crime and terrible,
• 0:24
  Speaker 1: terrible situations with domestic violence and alcohol related assaults. And
• 0:28
  Speaker 1: just going through that report, it really identifies what a
• 0:31
  Speaker 1: number of groups and individuals have been saying out of
• 0:35
  Speaker 1: Central Australia for quite some time.
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  Speaker 2: Now joining me on the line right now.
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  Speaker 1: Is the CEO of Central Australian Congress, Donna g.
• 0:43
  Speaker 2: Good morning to you. Donna.
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  Speaker 3: Hey morning, Katie, Thanks so much for.
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  Speaker 2: Your time this morning. Donna. What was your reaction to
• 0:51
  Speaker 2: the announcement yesterday.
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  Speaker 3: Oh, look, Katie, Congress is very pleased for Aboriginal leaders,
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  Speaker 3: communities and organizations in Australia have been listened to. As
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  Speaker 3: you said in your introduction, we've been calling very strongly
• 1:08
  Speaker 3: for a two fold strategy, strategy to address the harm
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  Speaker 3: that alcohol is causing for our people. So having the
• 1:17
  Speaker 3: reintroduction of alcohol bands to break the cycle of violence
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  Speaker 3: and keep our people and family safe, combined with sustained
• 1:29
  Speaker 3: investment and action on the drivers of destructive drinking like
• 1:35
  Speaker 3: intergenerational trauma, poverty, poor education, poor housing and discrimination. With
• 1:43
  Speaker 3: that announcement of two hundred and fifty million investments, along
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  Speaker 3: with the reintroduction of the alcohol restrictions, we think that
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  Speaker 3: both governments have made a very good decision and they
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  Speaker 3: have listened to what Aboriginal leaders have been calling for.
• 2:04
  Speaker 2: It took them a while, though, didn't it. Donald.
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  Speaker 1: I mean, they certainly seemed to be digging their heels
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  Speaker 1: in last week and the week before. I know that,
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  Speaker 1: you know, even yourself had been in quite a terrible
• 2:14
  Speaker 1: situation where you'd suffered a home break in, and you know,
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  Speaker 1: your story wasn't different to what a lot of people
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  Speaker 1: were saying out of Central Australia, which I guess was
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  Speaker 1: the really tough part. But they did seem to be
• 2:27
  Speaker 1: digging their heels in last week, didn't they.
• 2:31
  Speaker 3: Well, Katie, look, I've made it really clear, you know,
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  Speaker 3: leading up to this decision that we were looking at
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  Speaker 3: you know, this sort of situation occurring, So I don't
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  Speaker 3: really want to look backwards. Actually, I think it's important
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  Speaker 3: that we look forward and that we and that we
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  Speaker 3: all worked together with the Commonwealth, the Northern Territory government,
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  Speaker 3: and the Aboriginal leadership of the Northern Territory to actually
• 3:02
  Speaker 3: make sure that you know, that the robust process for
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  Speaker 3: decisions being made at the local level in communities that
• 3:15
  Speaker 3: are affected by these bans who would wish to see
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  Speaker 3: alcohol return to their communities, with appropriate mechanisms in place
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  Speaker 3: to ensure that we don't see a return of those
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  Speaker 3: awful statistics in relation to alcohol fuels harm. Along with
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  Speaker 3: making sure that the two hundred and fifty million dollar
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  Speaker 3: investment that we keep both governments accountable and in particular
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  Speaker 3: the Northern Territory government, but also those who will be
• 3:46
  Speaker 3: recipients of this funding to make sure that there are
• 3:50
  Speaker 3: appropriate accountability mechanisms put on them as well. We're all
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  Speaker 3: in this together. We're all in this together, and if
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  Speaker 3: we're going to make a difference, we've got to work
• 4:01
  Speaker 3: together to make this happen, and we've got to have accountability,
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  Speaker 3: transparency and shared decision making.
• 4:08
  Speaker 1: Yeah, spot on, you know, particularly with making sure that
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  Speaker 1: money that is invested is going into areas where it's
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  Speaker 1: truly needed and that it's having an impact in a
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  Speaker 1: positive way.
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  Speaker 3: Exactly, Katie, and I think, Look, I think that what
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  Speaker 3: we've got here is some really important elements of the
• 4:30
  Speaker 3: two hundred and fifty million dollar announcement. So community safety,
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  Speaker 3: ensuring that you know that we have cohesion and more
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  Speaker 3: news engagement and diversion programs, job creation, better services, addressing
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  Speaker 3: feedal alcohol fecter and disorder fas D, investing in families
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  Speaker 3: and improving school attendance and completion. Now I'm not sure
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  Speaker 3: if your listeners are aware, but we have three thousand
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  Speaker 3: Aboriginal kids that aren't going to school across the Northern Territory.
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  Speaker 3: So the fact that they's been identified as an area,
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  Speaker 3: you know, for investments, I think is a really good
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  Speaker 3: decision of both governments. So we need to make sure
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  Speaker 3: that we that we that we have appropriately well designed
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  Speaker 3: strategies to get those three thousand kids that aren't going
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  Speaker 3: to school into the school system, and for those that
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  Speaker 3: are in the school system and that they're not dropping out,
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  Speaker 3: to keep them in, We've got to make sure that
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  Speaker 3: we've got you know, quality wrap around support services, you know,
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  Speaker 3: and their families and you know, in partnership with the
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  Speaker 3: Cist school. So we want I'd like to see the health,
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  Speaker 3: health sector and the education system working together to get
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  Speaker 3: those appropriate support, wrap around support services for those kids
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  Speaker 3: in the school as well the other the other area
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  Speaker 3: around fas D. You know, we've got a waiting list
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  Speaker 3: as an example at Congress, we've got a Child Youth
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  Speaker 3: Assessment and Treatment service and we've got we've got over
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  Speaker 3: a hundred referrals that we cannot meet the demand. So
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  Speaker 3: the announcement to have fas D is a priority area
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  Speaker 3: we are really pleased with. You know, one of my
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  Speaker 3: staff was recently, uh you know, doing some public media
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  Speaker 3: on this and said, look, you know, she was asked
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  Speaker 3: the question how, you know, in terms of additional staff
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  Speaker 3: to meet that need. What what would you be looking at?
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  Speaker 3: Because this service that we've got is one of its
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  Speaker 3: kind in the Northern Territory as well as in the country,
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  Speaker 3: you know, having neuropsychologists, social workers and the appropriate field
• 7:00
  Speaker 3: workforce to do these assessments and then have subsequent treatment provided.
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  Speaker 3: So we're only able to do that in town. There's
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  Speaker 3: a much there's much need out in the bush. So
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  Speaker 3: she was asked the question, what what what what additional
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  Speaker 3: you know, stuffing would you need and she said, look,
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  Speaker 3: I hate to think, but off the top of my head,
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  Speaker 3: at least four to six, you know, additional staff to
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  Speaker 3: meet the need. And that's that's the need in terms
• 7:29
  Speaker 3: of the waiting list as well as meeting some of
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  Speaker 3: the need out Bush. So I am really pleased with
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  Speaker 3: the focus areas and I'm really pleased that we've got
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  Speaker 3: to both and approach not a either all because I've
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  Speaker 3: constantly heard this debate that alcohol is a symptom. Now
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  Speaker 3: I get that, I really understand that that's that. But
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  Speaker 3: at the end of the day, this is, you know, complex,
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  Speaker 3: and my view is is that alcohol consumption and as
• 8:02
  Speaker 3: a result of that, alcohol related harm is actually a cause.
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  Speaker 3: And we thought we've seen it. We've seen it because
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  Speaker 3: as soon as you lifted the restriction, look what happened.
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  Speaker 3: So the underlying social determinants, you know, we've got a
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  Speaker 3: long way to go there. So it's actually both. We've
• 8:20
  Speaker 3: got to do both, and we've got to make sure
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  Speaker 3: that we you know, we stay the course. We stay
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  Speaker 3: the course, and we monitor the outcome and we make
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  Speaker 3: sure that we're making a difference.
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  Speaker 1: Donna, we are going to have to wrap up, but
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  Speaker 1: do you have a hope for Alice Springs and for
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  Speaker 1: Central Australia following on from that announcement yesterday?
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  Speaker 2: I know it was tough, Like the last couple of weeks.
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  Speaker 1: I'd seen a few of those interviews that you've done
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  Speaker 1: and it was it was tough to watch. So I
• 8:47
  Speaker 1: can't imagine how you know, how you were feeling and
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  Speaker 1: how the people of Alice were feeling. Do you have
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  Speaker 1: hope for the Red Center following on from yesterday, Katy.
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  Speaker 3: Katie, I am feeling very optimistic now. In light of
• 9:03
  Speaker 3: those immediate restrictions that were put in place, we saw
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  Speaker 3: almost immediately improvements. We saw improvements in domestic violence go
• 9:13
  Speaker 3: from twenty five a day down to under ten. We
• 9:15
  Speaker 3: saw police call outs go from two hundred to one
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  Speaker 3: hundred and twenty, and so we've seen immediate improvements. We've
• 9:24
  Speaker 3: still got a bit to go, of course, but this
• 9:27
  Speaker 3: announcement is really going to help that, and we've just
• 9:31
  Speaker 3: got to work together, put politics aside and put in
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  Speaker 3: place the things that we know work. Do it in
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  Speaker 3: partnership with Aboriginal leadership. And communities and we will definitely
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  Speaker 3: bring the town back to what it was always a
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  Speaker 3: beautiful town. Like any other rural or remote town in Australia.
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  Speaker 3: We have our ups and downs, like I've said in
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  Speaker 3: the past, but I'm feeling optimistic. I am really feeling
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  Speaker 3: optimistic now. So thank you.
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  Speaker 1: K Yeah, I really appreciate your time this morning, Donna,
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  Speaker 1: and please keep in contact with us. I'd be really
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  Speaker 1: keen to hear how things are tracking, but keen to
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  Speaker 1: hear more as well about some of those initiatives that
• 10:11
  Speaker 1: you've spoken about with faz D and various other areas,
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  Speaker 1: because I think that they are really important parts of
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  Speaker 1: the discussion. So Donna Archie, thank you so much for
• 10:21
  Speaker 1: your time today.
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  Speaker 3: Thank you, Katie, thank you