本文是犯罪学专业Essay作业范例，题目是“Indigenous or aboriginal deaths in custody in Australia（澳大利亚土著或土著人在拘留期间的死亡）”，本文的重点是澳大利亚土著人或土著人在拘留期间的死亡。这一问题不仅在澳大利亚存在，而且普遍存在，因为土著居民在司法系统，特别是刑事司法系统中的代表比例过高。土著人民是世界上最边缘化的群体，特别是当我们看看他们所处的社会、卫生、经济和教育条件时。这就是为什么土著人民总是被定为犯罪的原因，这可以从美国、新西兰和加拿大等国的例子中得到证明(萨利班克斯，2005年)。在加拿大，土著人口只占总人口的3%，但他们关押的罪犯占大多数，因为他们占联邦监狱犯人的17%。在加拿大的一些监狱里，土著居民占犯人总数的60%。在萨斯喀彻温省，土著居民被监禁的人数是主流人口的35倍。
This paper is focused on indigenous or aboriginal deaths in custody in Australia. This problem is not only in Australia but it is a widespread occurrence since there is overrepresentation of Aboriginal in the justice systems especially the criminal justice systems. The indigenous people are the most marginalized across the world especially when one looks at social, health economic and educational conditions that they are put in. This is why the indigenous people are always criminalized and this can be justified by examples from countries such as United States of America, New Zealand and Canada (Sallybanks, 2005). In Canada aboriginal comprise of just 3% of the whole population but they have the majority criminals in custody since they are seventeen percent of the inmates in the federal prisons. In some penitentiaries in Canada the Aboriginal make up to 60% of the inmates. In a province such as Saskatchewan Aboriginal are incarcerated thirty five more times than the population which is the mainstream.
This paper discusses the criminal justice system in Australia and how there is indigenous overrepresentation in the same system. Furthermore, the paper looks into the findings which have been done by researchers on the indigenous deaths which happen when they are incarcerated in the context of Royal Commission which was done on the Aboriginal deaths in custody (Joudo & Curnow, 2007). Using other articles and research materials, the paper takes into account then deaths of prisoners in prisons and police custodies, which indicate some of the issues which relate to Aboriginal reaction to the system of criminal justice, more particularly in exercise of appropriate duty of care and more specifically in the reduction of the criminalization of the Aboriginal societies and communities.
Discussion讨论
The discussion on indigenous deaths in custody cannot be complete if one does not discuss about the work of the royal Commission which was incorporated to find out the causes of Aboriginal deaths in custody in Australia. This commission was established in 1987 and it findings were presented four years later to the federal parliament. This commission was generated by some organizations which were in support of the indigenous communities in Australia. The organizations included Aboriginal legal service, which was meant to defend the family members of those who had died during their time in prison and also their supporters (Australian Bureau of Statistics, 1996). In the early 1980s there were many deaths which occurred to people who were in prisons and police custody, and this caused serious alarm in all communities especially the Aboriginal society in the country.
如果不讨论皇家委员会的工作，就不可能完成关于拘留中土著死亡的讨论，该委员会是为查明澳大利亚拘留中土著死亡的原因而成立的。该委员会成立于1987年，其调查结果于四年后提交给联邦议会。这个委员会是由一些支持澳大利亚土著社区的组织设立的。这些组织包括土著法律服务机构，旨在保护那些在狱中死亡的人的家庭成员及其支持者(澳大利亚统计局，1996年)。80年代初，在监狱和警察拘留期间发生了许多人死亡的事件，这在全国所有社区，特别是土著社会中引起了严重的恐慌。
The overrepresentation of the Aboriginal people in custody was one of the major causes of deaths in custody according to the report presented by the Royal Commission. However, there was negligence of duty to the part of the authorities thus leading to deaths of the Aboriginal population. The committee found out that the custodial authorities had no understanding of duty of care; there were other defects to the system which were related to care that lead to such deaths. Furthermore, there were other failures which related to the exercise of care. In some instances the lack to provide care directly to the inmates also contributed to the deaths of the Aboriginal people in custody. In his findings on New South Wales a commissioner by the name McCall (2004) concluded that,
“Every one of the (18) deaths was potentially avoidable and in a more enlightened and efficient system … might not have occurred. Many of those who died should not or need not have been in custody at all.” He found that “negligence, lack of care, and/or breach of instructions on the part of custodial authorities were found to have played an important role in the circumstances leading to 13 of the 18 deaths investigated” (pg63).
“每一起死亡事件都是可以避免的，如果在一个更开明、更高效的系统中……可能就不会发生。”许多死者本不应该或根本不需要被拘留。”他发现，"拘留当局的疏忽、缺乏照顾和/或违反指示，在被调查的18起死亡事件中有13起重要作用" (pg63)。
The position of the indigenous people which is disadvantaged one and also unequal has contributed to the difficulty in bringing these people to contact with the criminal justice system. The commission found that in order to do away with these disadvantages and inequality is only through self-determination, empowerment and reconciliation of the indigenous people (Williams, 2001). Through the commissions’ findings, it was noted that the Aboriginality of the person was also an important factor and in some specific cases the dominant person in Aboriginality lead to the eventual death in custody and also the placement of the person. In almost 50% of the cases which had been reported the victim had been separated from his/her family since childhood and such a percentage also had been in custody since the age 15 years. It was also noted that over eighty percent of these cases the victims were unemployed. Generally the dead people were reported to have had early contact with the criminal justice system or had repeated cases in the system. The history of the Aboriginal people is also a factor that contributes to the death in custody. This factor was also highlighted in the article by Dalton (1996b) where he says that,
“The history of Aboriginal relations with the broader community has impacted upon Aboriginal people in many ways. Collectively, Aboriginal people have been denied access to the social and economic power, which is essential to effective participation in mainstream society. The dislocation of Aboriginal people from their land and culture, and the intrusion of Western society into Aboriginal life have rendered many Aboriginal forms of social control ineffective. The dependence, which characterized the confined and controlled way in which most Aboriginal people lived for much of recent history, has left people poorly equipped to deal with the many social problems they experience” (pg 45).
“土著人与广大社区的关系在许多方面影响了土著人。土著人集体被剥夺了获得社会和经济权力的机会，而这是有效参与主流社会所必不可少的。土著人民脱离他们的土地和文化，西方社会侵入土著生活，使得许多土著形式的社会控制无效。在近代史的大部分时间里，大多数土著居民生活的方式都受到限制和控制，这种依赖使人们没有能力处理他们经历的许多社会问题”(pg 45)。
There were e 339 recommendations which were made by the Royal Commission in order to achieve some objectives in reducing the custody levels, assuring self determination and remedying disadvantages which are associated to social life. There have been commitments in all subsequent governments in Australia in achieving and implementing these recommendations. There were also recommendations which were designed to reduce custody deaths m, which included the complete removal of hanging places from cells, increase of training to the judiciary and police in cross culture societies and increase of awareness to the medical and custodial staff in issues concerning the proper handling of indigenous and no-indigenous people who have been incarcerated (Joudo & Veld, 2005).
Manner of Death in Custody拘留期间的死亡方式
The findings of the manner of death are similar to the causes of death. The manner of death is in many types, it can be self inflicted, justifiable homicide, and natural causes, accidental or unlawful homicide. In the self inflicted death, this is considered to be any form of self harm that may lead to death other than natural death. For instance gunshot wounds which are self inflicted and most hangings are considered to be self inflicted deaths. There are circumstances that lead to deaths and are authorized by law such deaths are called justifiable homicide e.g. a prisoner shot by a warden who is acting in self-defence.
死亡方式的调查结果与死亡原因相似。死亡方式有多种，可以是自残、正当杀人、自然原因、意外或非法杀人。在自我造成的死亡中，这被认为是可能导致死亡的任何形式的自我伤害，而不是自然死亡。例如，枪伤是自己造成的，大多数绞刑被认为是自己造成的死亡。有些情况会导致死亡，这是法律授权的，这种死亡被称为正当杀人，例如，一名囚犯在自卫时被看守开枪打死。
Strategies for Managing Deaths in Custody
Response
For any program of intervention appropriate and timely intervention is important to save lives. For one to have effective intervention it is important to treat every aspect of the accident or incident of self harm with the seriousness it deserves and not looking at the behavior as that which is manipulative. In some jurisdictions it is crucial to provide prisoners with proper access of experienced and knowledgeable counseling staff for a quick response. Prisons in Australia have started some of these programs such as the mobilization of teams which are in charge of multi-discipline (Bhatia & Anderson, 1995). There has been a recent procedure in New South Wales where there is deployment of Risk Intervention Team (RIT). Incase an incident is reported, a record is made on the inmates case file and individual file, while also a completion of the notification is made to the RIT. In the RIT form there are three categories of risks which are indentified, suicide threat, definite risk of suicide and a definite self harm. The team comprises of several members who include a nurse, custodial officer and two other members of the team.
It is a requirement by the Department of Correction in New South Wales, that all occurrences of suicide be investigated and concluded. In such circumstances, several treatment alternatives are suggested for instance, access to visitors by inmates, special placements, special dormitories or cells and counseling. Prisoners in Australia who are categorized as high risk factors in terms of self harm risk being placed under the watch of crisis care units (Dalton, 1999a). The existence of these units is in areas such as Queensland, Victorian, New South Wales and prison systems in Western Australia.
Accommodation住宿
In order to manage inmates who are at risk various accommodation strategies have been put in place in Australian prisons. Prisoners are more likely to commit self harm or suicide when they are alone in cell; this has made many correction centers and prisons to come up with shared cells and dormitories in order to avert these risks (Pedersen & Walker, 2000).
为了管理处于危险中的囚犯，澳大利亚监狱实施了各种住宿策略。囚犯独处时更容易自残或自杀;为了避免这些风险，许多矫正中心和监狱都采用了共用牢房和宿舍的方式(Pedersen & Walker, 2000)。
In a report compiled from Northern Territory, the findings are that there are positive results in dormitory accommodation, since distress in Aboriginal inmates has declined drastically. In the recent past the method of accommodating inmates who are suicidal in strip cells has been criticized. But in most extreme suicidal risks the use of strip cells, where an inmate is dispossessed all his/her clothing in order to reduce the chances of suicide, is being used in Tasmania. The policy in New South Wales says that not inmate shall be stripped naked and put in a cell alone. If the inmate is in extreme suicidal risk, then he shall remain fully clothed but at 24 hour surveillance by cameras and a guard. A number of cells in Australia for example Australian Capital Territory, Western Australia cells and Northern Territory, have used cameras to monitor inmates (Biles & Dalton, 2001).
A report that was released by the criminology unit of the Royal Commission into Aboriginal Deaths in Custody (RCIADIC), recommends that all Australian prisons should provide cells which are safe for prisoners who risk to commit suicide or who are a threat to themselves. Through the creation of such cells, hanging points would be eliminated for instance rails, bars and light fittings. Safe cells would also increase surveillance of the prisoners thus making it easy to monitor them (Day and Davison 2004).
Supports支持
This is another crucial prevention strategy. This strategy includes regular counseling and continuous assessment of prisoners by members of medical teams which are situated in prisons, such teams comprise of the following members; social workers, psychologists, psychiatrists and psychiatric nurses. Peer support programs are also other means which can be used in prisons to combat self harm or suicide. Such programs involve prisoners being taught important skills in peer support and they have been observed to be essential in combating deaths in custody and also monitoring distressed inmates which occurs during reception of inmates (Chen et al. 2005). A prison such as Mount Gambier which is in Southern Australia has such a program where inmates are on duty 24 hours to support fellow inmates. This program has been enhanced through regular committee meetings between peer members and the prison administration.
这是另一项重要的预防战略。这一战略包括由设在监狱的医疗小组成员对囚犯进行定期咨询和持续评估，这些小组由以下成员组成;社会工作者、心理学家、精神病学家和精神科护士。同伴支持项目也是其他可以在监狱中用来对抗自残或自杀的方法。此类项目包括向囚犯传授同伴支持方面的重要技能，它们被认为在打击拘留期间的死亡和监测收容囚犯期间发生的痛苦囚犯方面至关重要(Chen等人，2005年)。澳大利亚南部的芒特甘比尔(Mount Gambier)监狱就有这样一个项目，让囚犯24小时值班，以支持狱友。通过狱友和监狱管理部门之间的定期委员会会议，这一方案得到了加强。
Support schemes which involve prisoners have been put in place especially those targeted to Aboriginal inmates and the programs include visit schemes for the Aboriginals, prisoner support services for the Aboriginals and staff who are psychologists basically inclined to the Aboriginal inmates’ welfare. Various jurisdictions in Australia have emphasized on the significance of prisoners support visit programs. There has also been an attempt to increase the contact between visitors and the correction staff .This is aimed at increasing communication between prisoners so as the prisoners can effectively communicate their risks and needs and also to seek better services from the staff (Joudo, 2006b).
Management管理
This concept of managing prisons has been there for many years. In a number of jurisdictions, they are viewed as vital in monitoring of inmates for indications of difficulty and anguish. In prisons such as New South Wales, individual’s management plans are developed and they are continuously assed by a management team which is established by the administration for discipline measures. Such a program is designed to increase cooperation and interaction between the inmates and the prison staff. In the Victorian model of managing inmates, the prisons are segmented in to small sections or units which are easily manageable (Atkinson & Dagger, 1996). Members of staff are allocated in each unit daily to overlook and monitor the inmates in such units on a permanent basis. There is greater interaction between members of staff and inmates in such units thus reducing tension and distress among prisoners.
这种管理监狱的理念已经存在很多年了。在一些司法管辖区，它们被视为监控囚犯困难和痛苦迹象的重要手段。在新南威尔士州等监狱中，制定了个人管理计划，并由行政当局为纪律措施而设立的管理小组不断地进行检验。这样一个项目旨在增加囚犯和监狱工作人员之间的合作和互动。在维多利亚时代的囚犯管理模式中，监狱被分割成易于管理的小区域或单位(Atkinson & Dagger, 1996)。每个单位每天都有工作人员分配，长期监督和监督这些单位的囚犯。这些单位的工作人员和囚犯之间有更多的互动，从而减少囚犯之间的紧张和痛苦。
In case of a transfer of any inmate in prisons such as New South Wales, the prisoner is accompanied with his/her case management files so as to improve the services. There has been an agreement between various departments in Australia for example Correction Department, Federal police and ACT Youth Justice which has formalized the exchange of important information about an inmate for proper monitoring. Exchange of information about inmates and proper communication within various correctional institutions is recommended in Australia. The new model of suicide prevention in Western Australia has emphasized communication and responsibility of various correctional departments in order to reduce deaths in custody (Collins & Mouzos, 2001). Drills in suicide prevention and training are part and parcel of the newly formed suicide prevention strategy.
Prison Environment
Within the new frame work of suicide prevention the Department of justice in the Western Australian Correctional centers, has made its priority to reduce prison stressors. The following measures have been proposed by the department:
The extension of programs in peer support and to increase the roles of fellow prisoners in reducing custody deaths,
To increase prisoners recreational activities such as provision of facilities such as radio and television the remanded prisoners and those who are at risk of committing suicide ad,
Reducing overcrowding in prisons through improving the prison facilities.
The new system in Australian prisons has been put in place to stabilize punishment standards in all prisons and also to put in place new systems for adjudicating grievances and monitoring prisoners’ punishments (Joudo, 2006a). There is also an emphasis on programs which involve induction in order to ease a transition of prisoners into prison environment.
Conclusion结论
Education is an important factor in life and it is one of the social determinants. Education also links other factors of life such as proper housing, unemployment, poverty and access to health care. Therefore, it is important for the federal government of Australia to educate the Aboriginal community in order to reduce their population in prisons. Indigenous people are marginalized thus making them lead a criminal life in such for better services (Commonwealth of Australia, 2002).The federal government should put more emphasis in implementing the recommendations of the Royal Commission in order to reduce deaths of Aboriginal people in custody. There is also need for improvement in the federal police since some of the inmates die in police custody due to harassment and other factors. Finally in order to eradicate deaths in prisons, the prison facilities should be improved as has been discussed in the paper.
教育是生活中的一个重要因素，是社会决定因素之一。教育还将其他生活因素，如适当的住房、失业、贫穷和获得保健等联系起来。因此，对澳大利亚联邦政府来说，教育土著社区以减少他们在监狱中的人口是很重要的。土著人民被边缘化，因此他们过着犯罪的生活，以获得更好的服务(澳大利亚联邦，2002年)。联邦政府应更加重视执行皇家委员会的建议，以减少被拘留土著人的死亡人数。联邦警察也需要改进，因为一些囚犯在警察拘留期间因骚扰和其他因素而死亡。最后，为了消除监狱内的死亡现象，应当改善监狱设施，正如论文中所讨论的那样。
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