Latest / 360 with Katie Woolf / Alice Springs Councillor Mark Coffey says the Council has suspended the community footy competition over concerns about crime but hopes it’ll still go ahead in remote communities

Transcript

Alice Springs Councillor Mark Coffey says the Council has suspended the community footy competition over concerns about crime but hopes it’ll still go ahead in remote communities · 360 with Katie Woolf

• 0:00
  Speaker 1: We know out of Alice Springs at the moment that
• 0:02
  Speaker 1: the town Council has withdrawn support for the Alice Springs
• 0:05
  Speaker 1: or sorry for the Central Australian Football League, their community
• 0:08
  Speaker 1: competition which the upcoming season is due to start in May,
• 0:13
  Speaker 1: I believe now Counselor Michael Little moved the motion at
• 0:16
  Speaker 1: a recent council meeting following debate about crime, which passed
• 0:20
  Speaker 1: with a slim majority. Now it has raised questions about
• 0:23
  Speaker 1: how the competition is going to proceed, so it runs
• 0:26
  Speaker 1: from May until August. But there are also, you know,
• 0:30
  Speaker 1: by the sounds of things, a number of reasons why
• 0:32
  Speaker 1: the council has made this decision. And joining me on
• 0:35
  Speaker 1: the line right now is the Alla Springs Town councilor
• 0:38
  Speaker 1: Mark Coffee, Good morning to you.
• 0:40
  Speaker 2: Mark, Good morning Toady.
• 0:43
  Speaker 1: Mark. Tell me this was obviously a vote that happened yesterday.
• 0:46
  Speaker 1: Why did the council decide to withdraw the support for
• 0:50
  Speaker 1: the Central Australian Football League community competition?
• 0:54
  Speaker 2: Okatie, We have been talking about the community competition in
• 0:58
  Speaker 2: Ala Springs but for a couple of years, ever since
• 1:02
  Speaker 2: I've been on council, and we were concerned that there's
• 1:05
  Speaker 2: sort of pushbull factor about a community coming in to
• 1:09
  Speaker 2: play football along with their families and then getting stuck
• 1:13
  Speaker 2: in town and they're not returning to community and the
• 1:15
  Speaker 2: impact that that had on our springs. I should point
• 1:20
  Speaker 2: out that this is not about stopping Aboriginal people playing football.
• 1:26
  Speaker 2: They can still play in the town comp which occurs
• 1:29
  Speaker 2: on a Saturday. This about the community com which should
• 1:33
  Speaker 2: be played out in community. We should have facilities out
• 1:36
  Speaker 2: in community so that you know, those communities don't have
• 1:40
  Speaker 2: to travel hundreds of kilometers with all the associated challenges
• 1:44
  Speaker 2: that that brings, but allowing them to play sport, especially
• 1:49
  Speaker 2: football in this case, out on the community. So with
• 1:53
  Speaker 2: everything that's happened in the last twelve months with them,
• 1:55
  Speaker 2: the crime and law and order issues and the impacts
• 1:57
  Speaker 2: on our springs that we've been tough for, we just
• 2:01
  Speaker 2: thought it was important that the town has the ability
• 2:05
  Speaker 2: to pause this competition for this year. It's only for
• 2:09
  Speaker 2: this year, yep, and that afl MT and others can
• 2:13
  Speaker 2: work out how they can get these games to be
• 2:16
  Speaker 2: played out in communities in the future.
• 2:19
  Speaker 1: And Mark does the competition usually bring quite a few
• 2:23
  Speaker 1: people in from the communities. You know, when you talk
• 2:25
  Speaker 1: about not just the teams but everybody that comes to watch.
• 2:29
  Speaker 2: Yeah, that's rightly so people do travel in families travel,
• 2:33
  Speaker 2: they come in to watch as well as do other things.
• 2:36
  Speaker 2: But as I've said, there is some evidence out there
• 2:39
  Speaker 2: that they tend to stay in town and of course
• 2:41
  Speaker 2: that impacts on where they're living. They go into town camps,
• 2:45
  Speaker 2: and that it impacts on already overcrowded houses and another
• 2:50
  Speaker 2: sort of short term accommodation is very limited in Oil Springs,
• 2:54
  Speaker 2: so that does impact significantly on the town. And we
• 2:58
  Speaker 2: much prefer the community is to be able to play
• 3:02
  Speaker 2: this sport and in community, and we've had that from
• 3:05
  Speaker 2: a number of community people are and cold, I think
• 3:09
  Speaker 2: just today and last council meeting was saying it should
• 3:14
  Speaker 2: definitely be played on community. And you know, we're a
• 3:17
  Speaker 2: bit dismayed to hear of AFL spending millions of dollars
• 3:22
  Speaker 2: to allow Tasmania to put an AFL side in. Well,
• 3:25
  Speaker 2: we'd ask them to come and spend some money in
• 3:27
  Speaker 2: our remote communities to allow people out there access to
• 3:32
  Speaker 2: some of the basics that you get everywhere else in Australia.
• 3:36
  Speaker 1: I know that that certainly AFL and t have issued
• 3:39
  Speaker 1: a statement and they have said that you know that
• 3:42
  Speaker 1: the that the decision by the council, they're deeply deeply
• 3:46
  Speaker 1: disappointed by the decision to withdraw support for the for
• 3:50
  Speaker 1: the competition, and that to date there's no evidence around
• 3:54
  Speaker 1: the supposed negative impact the community competition has on social
• 3:58
  Speaker 1: issues in Alice Springs. I mean, is there any evidence
• 4:01
  Speaker 1: to support that it does bring any antisocial behavior?
• 4:06
  Speaker 2: Yeah, well, I don't accept the door. It was on
• 4:09
  Speaker 2: the afl MP board and the ALPA board for many years.
• 4:12
  Speaker 2: We've had numerous incidents at the football and around the football,
• 4:17
  Speaker 2: not just from players but also supporters and from people
• 4:22
  Speaker 2: that are traveling with them impacting our springs. I think
• 4:25
  Speaker 2: that's well documented. I just don't accept that, Katie. We
• 4:30
  Speaker 2: do accept that football is very important in terms of
• 4:33
  Speaker 2: supporting young people, male and female in a number of areas.
• 4:39
  Speaker 2: But we would say that this is not about stopping
• 4:42
  Speaker 2: people playing the sport. It's about enabling them to do
• 4:46
  Speaker 2: it in their home communities, closer to home, so that
• 4:50
  Speaker 2: these young people can continue to do what they do,
• 4:52
  Speaker 2: attend school, work in their communities, do whatever they're doing
• 4:56
  Speaker 2: that rather than having to travel hundreds of condons AFL
• 5:00
  Speaker 2: and T already run comps over in I think gove
• 5:03
  Speaker 2: Elko Island and some of those other places. We would
• 5:07
  Speaker 2: ask them to start running some of these comps down
• 5:10
  Speaker 2: here in Santa Treza, in you and the move in
• 5:13
  Speaker 2: Ta Tree, even at Lara perhaps you know there are
• 5:17
  Speaker 2: I get that some of the facilities aren't up scratched,
• 5:19
  Speaker 2: but I'm sure the ofl MT could do more in
• 5:23
  Speaker 2: terms of getting some of these competitions running in these remotes.
• 5:28
  Speaker 1: And mark is the situation here, I mean, realistically, Alla
• 5:31
  Speaker 1: Springs has gone through a pretty dreadful time in recent
• 5:34
  Speaker 1: months with the issues that you have experience with crime
• 5:37
  Speaker 1: and anti social behavior. I mean, is the situation here
• 5:41
  Speaker 1: that town just needs a bit of respite.
• 5:45
  Speaker 2: Oh definitely, Cadie, like, we're all stealing the pinch of
• 5:49
  Speaker 2: these issues that have been occurring, especially since the Strom
• 5:53
  Speaker 2: your Future's Legislation fee. I understand it's back in now,
• 5:57
  Speaker 2: but for that six months it was living hell down
• 6:00
  Speaker 2: here in our springs. You know, people were getting officers,
• 6:03
  Speaker 2: breaking into cars, smash experiencing anti social behavior all the time. Now,
• 6:09
  Speaker 2: the NT government, to the credit that have put some
• 6:11
  Speaker 2: things in place, including our whole restrictions and that's improved things.
• 6:16
  Speaker 2: So we're all we're all sort of playing our partner this.
• 6:19
  Speaker 2: So now we're saying the lay Felm, you need to
• 6:21
  Speaker 2: play your part and counsel have made a decision that
• 6:26
  Speaker 2: the community can't occur here in town. You go sort
• 6:29
  Speaker 2: it out and get it happening out Bush to support
• 6:33
  Speaker 2: the Town of our Springs for this year so that
• 6:36
  Speaker 2: we can sort of return the town to normality, so
• 6:40
  Speaker 2: we don't have to put up with these levels of
• 6:43
  Speaker 2: law and order and crime and social behavior that's just
• 6:46
  Speaker 2: not acceptable. The behavior wouldn't be accepted anywhere else, and
• 6:49
  Speaker 2: say why should we accept it down here? It is?
• 6:53
  Speaker 2: It is important now.
• 6:55
  Speaker 1: I know as will Mark that obviously there was majority
• 6:58
  Speaker 1: support for this. Does look as though, you know, the
• 7:01
  Speaker 1: majority of counselors did did accept this and did say
• 7:04
  Speaker 1: that this was the right decision to make. From what
• 7:07
  Speaker 1: I can see, there were a couple that didn't. I
• 7:10
  Speaker 1: know that Counselors Marleybanks and Gavin Mowrens voted against the motion.
• 7:15
  Speaker 1: They also raise concerns that the move could be racially discriminate.
• 7:19
  Speaker 1: Discriminatory Do you feel as though that could be the case?
• 7:24
  Speaker 2: So no, I think you know, as I said earlier,
• 7:26
  Speaker 2: this is not about stopping Aboriginal people or community people
• 7:29
  Speaker 2: from playing football. They can still come in and play
• 7:32
  Speaker 2: in the community comp. They can play for the Red
• 7:34
  Speaker 2: Tails and the Pink Tails, and when that occurs, arrangements
• 7:38
  Speaker 2: are usually made through the clubs for transport and things
• 7:41
  Speaker 2: like that. It's well managed. It's quite different with the
• 7:45
  Speaker 2: community comp and we're saying we all means say the
• 7:48
  Speaker 2: community comp, but play it in your home community because
• 7:51
  Speaker 2: it just impacts too much on our springs. So that's
• 7:55
  Speaker 2: the point. It's not about stopping people. We encourage people
• 7:59
  Speaker 2: to pay for it. It's really important in terms of
• 8:02
  Speaker 2: development and other opportunities. But we just need a break
• 8:06
  Speaker 2: for this year in our springs for the community company much.
• 8:09
  Speaker 1: How are things going in Alice Springs at the moment?
• 8:12
  Speaker 1: I mean, has it quietened down a little bitter? Are
• 8:14
  Speaker 1: you still seeing you know some social issues?
• 8:19
  Speaker 2: Oh? Look, there's still those social issues are still around.
• 8:23
  Speaker 2: My sense is that they're not as bad as they were,
• 8:26
  Speaker 2: that we do get a little bit of respite on
• 8:29
  Speaker 2: particular days, but of course it's not a filabullet. There
• 8:33
  Speaker 2: are still significant issues, you know, personally just last week
• 8:39
  Speaker 2: our office in the CBD got breaken into it, as
• 8:41
  Speaker 2: did a number of other officers around us. So that's
• 8:46
  Speaker 2: still pretty frustrating. But you know, council personally, as a counselor,
• 8:52
  Speaker 2: I'd be more than happy to continue working with all
• 8:54
  Speaker 2: the stakeholders try and get better outcomes for Ourice Springs
• 8:58
  Speaker 2: and to change that behavior. It's all about the behavior
• 9:01
  Speaker 2: that needs to change now and into the future.
• 9:06
  Speaker 1: Well Mark Coffee, Alice Springstown Counselor, I really appreciate you
• 9:10
  Speaker 1: having a chat with me today on the show. And look,
• 9:12
  Speaker 1: I know some people won't agree with the decision that
• 9:14
  Speaker 1: the Counselor's made, but I think for you to reach
• 9:17
  Speaker 1: this point where you have made this decision, it sounds
• 9:20
  Speaker 1: as though quite a bit of thought has gone into
• 9:22
  Speaker 1: it and that there are some concerns here for the
• 9:25
  Speaker 1: broader community. So I think it's you know, while it's
• 9:29
  Speaker 1: a tough decision to make, by the sounds of it,
• 9:31
  Speaker 1: it has been done really thinking of the goodwill of
• 9:35
  Speaker 1: everybody around Alice Springs.
• 9:38
  Speaker 2: Oh definitely, Katie, this is not a quick decision. My
• 9:41
  Speaker 2: counsel little has raised this in the chamber for two years.
• 9:45
  Speaker 2: We haven't supported it previously, but I think after thinking
• 9:49
  Speaker 2: about it long and after weighing up the options and
• 9:52
  Speaker 2: the benefits and the pros and cons, that we decided
• 9:55
  Speaker 2: this is the best thing for Alice Springs right now.
• 9:59
  Speaker 2: You know. Hopefully we can support a community comp into
• 10:02
  Speaker 2: the future to be played out Bush look at the
• 10:07
  Speaker 2: town comp to improve that even more, but for now
• 10:09
  Speaker 2: I think this is what we need well.
• 10:11
  Speaker 1: Alice Springstown Counselor Mark Coffee, thanks so much for your
• 10:14
  Speaker 1: time this morning. Very much appreciated.
• 10:18
  Speaker 2: Thanks Katie, thank you