Australia's jail abuse may amount to torture: UN official
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This frame grab from an Australian Broadcasting Corporation program purportedly shows a teenage boy (R) pushed into the wall by prison guards at a youth detention center in the Northern Territory city of Darwin, Australia. (Via AFP)
The United Nations (UN) says the recently-revealed mistreatment of aboriginal minors in an Australian prison could amount to torture.
According to Press TV, the harsh treatment of the minors was revealed on Monday, when the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) released a video clip from the Don Dale Youth Detention Center in Australia’s Northern Territory.
The footage, shot between 2010-2014, showed guards beating six teenage prisoners, tear-gassing them, throwing them into cells by the neck, covering their heads with hoods and strapping them naked or half-naked to special chairs.
“It’s hard to tell only from the video or the press coverage but I do think that it’s a very worrisome development that can amount to torture or to cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment under any circumstance,” said Juan Mendez, the UN special rapporteur on torture, on Thursday.
The revelation prompted Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull to order a Royal Commission, the most powerful inquiry in the country, to launch a thorough investigation into the mistreatment of children in detention.
Australia’s Northern Territory has also suspended the use of hood restraints on children.
Rights body Save the Children has said the investigation needs to be Australia-wide, and not just limited to the Northern Territory.
Warren Mundine, an Australian Aboriginal leader, has said the crime rate within the community of the native Australians has to be investigated, too.
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