Let Alone to Listen: The Impact of Northern Territory Liquor Laws on Aboriginal Justice Outcomes
| Published date | 01 December 2024 |
| DOI | http://doi.org/10.1177/0067205X241305794 |
| Author | Joseph Negrine |
| Date | 01 December 2024 |
| Subject Matter | Articles |
Article
Federal Law Review
2024, Vol. 52(4) 456–478
© The Author(s) 2024
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DOI: 10.1177/0067205X241305794
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Let Alone to Listen: The Impact of
Northern Territory Liquor Laws on
Aboriginal Justice Outcomes
Joseph Negrine*
Abstract
This article tracks the development of liquor laws in the Northern Territory, considering their
impacts on Aboriginal justice outcomes and possible areas for reform. Noting the putative trade-off
between health and justice outcomes, it examines the Northern Territory National Emergency Re-
sponse Act 2007 (Cth), the Stronger Futures in the Northern Territory Act 2012 (Cth) and the 2022–
23 Liquor Act 2019 (NT) amendments. Under the most recent Liquor Act amendments, the sale,
possession and consumption of alcohol remain restricted in prescribed areas, which must de-
termine the future of their liquor laws by 28 February 2027. This article proposes that greater
investment is required to support Aboriginal leadership throughout this decision-making process.
Indeed, a central proposition of this article is that the failure to adequately consult Aboriginal
communities has been a shared feature of all three laws, and a fundamental barrier to improving
Aboriginal justice. Reflecting on the interaction between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal legal
systems, this article identifies issues in the current policies that risk replicating the shortcomings of
previous laws, thereby failing to empower Aboriginal leadership or improve Aboriginal justice
services.
Accepted 26 August 2022
I Introduction
Few policy debates in the Northern Territory animate the power struggle between paternalistic
governments and Indigenous self-determination like liquor laws. Despite decades of evidence
* LLB (Hons) candidate, Australian National University and former Law and Justice Intern at the North Australian Aboriginal
Justice Agency. The views expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views or
positions of NAAJA. With thanks to NAAJA’s John Rawnsley and Harita Sridhar, as well as the Wiltshire family and Winona
Kang for their support and encouragement on previous drafts. I respectfully acknowledge the Larrakia people, the traditional
owners and custodians of the country on which I lived and wrote this article. I pay my respect to their Elders past and
present, for they hold the traditions and memories that form their rich cultural tapestry. I acknowledge that sovereignty was
never ceded.
demonstrating the correlation between Indigenous self-determination and positive community
outcomes, previous laws like the Stronger Futures in the Northern Territory Act
1
indicate that
government paternalism has historically overshadowed Indigenous-led solutions.
2
The Stronger
Futures Act and its legislative package,
3
which commenced in July 2012,
4
reinforced controls on,
among other things, land ownership
5
; income management
6
; and alcohol control and consumption
7
—intervention measures established in the preceding 2007 Emergency Response.
8
While pur-
portedly designed to improve social conditions in Aboriginal communities,
9
the laws were widely
condemned as paternalistic, counterproductive and contrary to international law standards sur-
rounding the rights of Indigenous peoples.
10
On 16 July 2022, the alcohol-related provisions in the
Stronger Futures Act ceased to be in force.
11
In its place, the NT Government adopted an opt-in
policy,provi ding alcohol-protected areas
12
with the choice to extend their alcohol restrictions.
13
The
change in alcohol restrictions —in theory —offered the possibility of moving away from reductive
historical stereotypes that portrayed Aboriginal people as ‘largely incapable of governing their own
lives’.
14
However, much like the Stronger Futures Act itself, the new regulations did not receive
universal support. Priscilla Atkins (Eastern Arrernte), the then-CEO of the North Australian
Aboriginal Justice Agency (NAAJA), viewed the change as ‘utterly irresponsible’and ‘a recipe for
disaster’.
15
Paul McCue, the then-President of the NT Police Association, stated that the laws would
1. Stronger Futures in the Northern Territory Act 2012 (Cth) (‘Stronger Futures Act’).
2. Royal Commission into Aboriginal Deaths in Custody (Final Report, April 1991) vol 1, [1.7.11]; Janet Hunt and Diane
Smith, ‘Indigenous Community Governance Project: YearTwo Research Findings’(Working Paper No 36/2007, Centre
for Aboriginal Economic Policy Research, April 2007) xvii, 3, 12.
3. The Gillard government passed three Acts, which have been collectively described as the ‘Stronger Futures’legislation:
Stronger Futures Act (n 1); StrongerFutures in the Northern Territory (Consequential and TransitionalProvisions) Act
2012 (Cth); Social Security Legislation Amendment Act 2012 (Cth).
4. Stronger Futures Act (n 1) s 2(1).
5. Ibid ss 43, 45.
6. Social Security Legislation Amendment Act 2012 (n 3).
7. Stronger Futures Act (n 1) pt 2.
8. See Northern Territory National Emergency Response Act 2007 (Cth) (‘NTNER’).
9. Consistent with the Pathways to the Northern Territory Aboriginal Justice Agreement Report, this article uses the term
Aboriginal to refer to all people of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander descent living in the Northern Territory(NT).
‘The use of this term reflects the wishes of Aboriginal people in the Northern Territory’:Northern Territory Government,
Pathways to the Northern Territory Aboriginal Justice Agreement (Report, 2021) 6 <https://justice.nt.gov.au/__data/
assets/pdf_file/0009/728163/Pathways-to-the-northern-territory-aboriginal-justice-agreement.pdf>.
10. See, eg, Shelley Bielefeld, ‘History Wars and Stronger Futures Laws: A Stronger Future or Perpetuating Past Pater-
nalism?’(2014) 39(1) Alternative Law Journal 15, 17.
11. Stronger Futures Act (n 1) s 118.
12. ‘Alcohol-protected areas’refer to geographic areas in the NTwhere the possession, sale and consumption of alcohol are
highly regulated. The term was introduced in the Stronger Futures Act, see ibid s 27.
13. Liquor Act 2019 (NT) s 170A, as at 17 July 2022 (‘Liquor Act’). See also Elizabeth Crawford Spencer and Andrew
Lockyer, ‘The Northern Territory is about to ease alcohol restrictions, but more consultation from First Nations
community members is needed first’,The Conversation (online, 28 June 2022) <https://theconversation.com/the-
northern-territory-is-about-to-ease-alcohol-restrictions-but-more-consultation-from-first-nations-community-members-
is-needed-first-184844>.
14. Bielefeld, ‘History Wars and Stronger Futures Laws’(n 10) 15-6; Michael Park, ‘“Shameful chapter”: Intervention ends
in the NT after 15years’,SBS (online, 18 July 2022) <https://www.sbs.com.au/nitv/article/2022/07/18/shameful-chapter-
intervention-ends-nt-after-15-years>.
15. Aboriginal M edical Services Alliance of the Northern Territory, North Australian Aboriginal Justice Agency (NAAJ A)
and Aboriginal Housing NT, ‘NT Governmentmust withdraw StrongerFutures Alcohol Bill’(Media Release, 22 April
2022) <https://www.amsant.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/220422_Media-Release_NAAJA_AMSANT_
AHNT_Alcohol-legislation.pdf>.
Negrine 457
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