Moree in NSW is the ‘perfect location’ for remote drones, police say. But critics worry about impact of increased surveillance on local Aboriginal community.
…
Jonathan Hall Spence says police “must do a lot more to explain the legal framework for this trial”.
“The Moree community deserves to know if the proposed use will undermine those legal protections,” he says.
Historically, police powers have been “disproportionately exercised against First Nations people,” says Hall Spence.
“We’re concerned that we’ll see the same thing repeated … with First Nations people harassed and over-surveilled,” he says.
Hall Spence says the trial ignores the root causes of youth crime – and, if kids are incarcerated, they are statistically more likely to reoffend.
“Moree deserves solutions to the harm caused by crime. But history shows that focusing on arresting and charging more young people does not deliver a safer community.”
