Latest / 360 with Katie Woolf / Run4Blue organiser Tammy Watson speaks of the toll on NT officers following another instance of police suicide in recent days

Transcript

Run4Blue organiser Tammy Watson speaks of the toll on NT officers following another instance of police suicide in recent days · 360 with Katie Woolf

• 0:00
  Speaker 1: Now.
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  Speaker 2: We learned over the weekend, as we've spoken about, that
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  Speaker 2: a Northern Territory Police officer had taken his own life,
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  Speaker 2: the third in as many months for officers in the
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  Speaker 2: Northern Territory. As we understand, he was a long serving
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  Speaker 2: member of the force and wrote extensively about his struggles
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  Speaker 2: with post traumatic stress. We know that Run for Blue
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  Speaker 2: is on now and throughout May. It is a virtual
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  Speaker 2: race held annually that supports families of fallen police officers
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  Speaker 2: through police legacy. And I am joined on the line
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  Speaker 2: by Northern Territory Police officer and one of the event organizers,
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  Speaker 2: Tammy Watson. Good morning to you, Tammy.
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  Speaker 3: Yeah, hey, how am you today?
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  Speaker 1: Not too bad? Tammy?
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  Speaker 2: You and I have spoken over the years about Run
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  Speaker 2: for Blue and the wonderful, wonderful event and wonderful thing
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  Speaker 2: that it is. We know it's important every year to
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  Speaker 2: recognize how officers really put all of themselves into their
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  Speaker 2: job as officers, and we know that I think really
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  Speaker 2: for this year is it's more meaningful than ever.
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  Speaker 3: It certainly is, Katie, it really is. Those many people
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  Speaker 3: are aware that we've lost three of our members in
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  Speaker 3: the last three months, whether they've been current serving or
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  Speaker 3: ex members but still very close to the job. So yeah,
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  Speaker 3: this year is really really important to us and to
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  Speaker 3: be able to support the families of those members.
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  Speaker 1: It is so incredibly important.
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  Speaker 2: Like I said, you and I have spoken on over
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  Speaker 2: the years about the wonderful event. I know that it's
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  Speaker 2: been a really tough few months for our territory police.
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  Speaker 2: When you talk about the loss of those three officers
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  Speaker 2: and something that is hard, I'm sure for you to
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  Speaker 2: speak about a beautiful post on the Facebook page over
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  Speaker 2: the weekend though as well. And look, I don't obviously
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  Speaker 2: it's your call whether you want to, you know, whether
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  Speaker 2: you want to name the person whose life was lost
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  Speaker 2: on the weekend, but you know, it's just heartbreaking when
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  Speaker 2: you think of what's going.
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  Speaker 3: On, it is absolutely heartbreaking. Look, I haven't spoken to
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  Speaker 3: the family law gain permission to speak publicly. Obviously our
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  Speaker 3: Facebook page is open to the public, but to speak
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  Speaker 3: about it is very difficult. This member was a fierce
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  Speaker 3: advocate for talking about mental health and acknowledging that he'd
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  Speaker 3: had his own difficulties over the years, and he really
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  Speaker 3: made it okay for particularly our older members to recognize
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  Speaker 3: that it's all right, not to be okay. So yeah,
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  Speaker 3: an absolute tragic loss. He was a mentor, an amazing
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  Speaker 3: police officer, highly respected across the agency and as an agency.
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  Speaker 3: We're all grieving, but I can't imagine what his family
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  Speaker 3: is going through at the moment.
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  Speaker 2: Yeah me either, you know, my heart goes out to
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  Speaker 2: them and to all of you.
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  Speaker 1: Really, it's such a tough time.
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  Speaker 2: I know that I'd certainly interacted with this person in
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  Speaker 2: his role, and he was a wonderful bloke.
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  Speaker 1: I certainly didn't know him well.
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  Speaker 2: But with those interactions, I knew he was a really
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  Speaker 2: good person. And like I've said, it is so hard
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  Speaker 2: for you guys right now when you're dealing with the
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  Speaker 2: loss of your work colleagues, but work colleagues who are
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  Speaker 2: incredibly good friends, and it really does just show you
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  Speaker 2: how important that Run for Blue is. Tell us a
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  Speaker 2: little bit about you know what the aim is for
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  Speaker 2: this year, Tammy, Yeah, so.
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  Speaker 3: Look Run for Blue for those that don't know, is
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  Speaker 3: a virtual run or walk or hop skip jumper. I
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  Speaker 3: don't really care. But for the entire months of May,
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  Speaker 3: we encourage people to get out and walk, exercise, do
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  Speaker 3: whatever you can, but register for our event. Everything that
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  Speaker 3: we goes to the police legacies across Australia. This is
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  Speaker 3: our fourth year running or walking how would you look
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  Speaker 3: at it? And you know, we just want to tip
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  Speaker 3: the scales. Like we've been able to raise over three
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  Speaker 3: hundred thousand in the last three years. Last year alone
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  Speaker 3: was one hundred and eighty five thousand across the Australia.
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  Speaker 3: The NT really need our support this year and everybody's support.
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  Speaker 3: We've got grieving families more so than what we we've
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  Speaker 3: had in the past in such a short amount of time,
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  Speaker 3: and so we really really want to get behind our
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  Speaker 3: MT colleagues and families to raise money for the non
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  Speaker 3: Territory Police Legacy so that they can support those families
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  Speaker 3: while they're going through the most freendous time of their lives.
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  Speaker 1: Tell me, how can people get involved?
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  Speaker 2: You know, maybe they don't have a family member that's
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  Speaker 2: a police officer, or they don't even really know any
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  Speaker 2: of our police first hand, but what can they do?
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  Speaker 2: How can they get involved to show their support for
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  Speaker 2: our police?
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  Speaker 3: So run for black, Just Google or whatever search engine
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  Speaker 3: you use, Run for blue, it will come up with it.
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  Speaker 3: Go fundraise me. So go fundraise website where you register
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  Speaker 3: and or you can even donate directly to the police
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  Speaker 3: legacy via that means