The NT’s attorney-general says she is focused on protecting victims regardless of their cultural background and questions allegations that the government’s suite of crime reforms is targeting Aboriginal Territorians.
The NT’s attorney-general, Marie-Clare Boothby , has said she and her government are “standing up” for Aboriginal victims of crime despite criticism from leading Indigenous bodies labelling recent policy reforms as racist.
In an exclusive one-on-one interview, Ms Boothby said the CLP is committed to closing the gap when it comes to Indigenous incarceration rates, and tougher consequences are a step in that direction.The minister conceded that more work is required when it comes to tackling the root cause of criminal offending in the NT.The Northern Territory’s attorney-general has insisted she is “standing up” for Aboriginal victims of crime in the face of mounting criticism of the Country Liberal Party government’s tough-on-crime policies and their impact on Indigenous incarceration. After a year of law-and-order changes focused on restricting bail and introducing tougher punishments for young people, coinciding with a rapid rise in prisoner numbers, the CLP government has been openly criticised by several Indigenous bodies for allegedly targeting Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people through its policies.The Northern Territory’s four Aboriginal land councils have issued a rare joint statement, accusing the NT government of ignoring the human rights of Aboriginal people. Earlier this year, the NT’s four land councils joined together to accuse the government of overt racism and human rights abuses, with Central Land Council deputy chair Barbara Shaw claiming the government was “stacking and racking” Aboriginal people in prisons. Speaking to Stateline NT, Marie-Clare Boothby denied the government was targeting Indigenous Territorians and said her focus was on protecting victims regardless of their background. “Our policies apply to everyone equally and it’s certainly not racist to want a safer community,” she said.When asked whether she recognised the growing rift between the CLP and Indigenous representatives on justice policy, Ms Boothby said she disputed claims the government’s policies were discriminatory. “We have so many victims who are Aboriginal victims, so how is it racist that we want to protect those people at the same time as protecting all people?,” she said.According to the most recent Closing the Gap target report, the NT is going backwards when it comes to reducing Indigenous incarceration rates, with the During a meeting of Australia’s attorneys-general earlier this year, Ms Boothby said community safety should not come at the expense of the NT meeting its Closing the Gap targets, raising questions over the NT’s commitment to the plan. Asked about the government’s stance on Closing the Gap, Ms Boothby said: “If we want to reduce incarceration, we have to reduce the crime.” Marie-Clare Boothby says her government is committed to Closing the Gap, but argues that being tough-on-crime is working towards that goal. She said the introduction of harsher consequences for offenders was a step toward achieving that goal.So far, the government’s more punitive measures have resulted in more people being put behind bars, according to data published by the Australian Bureau of Statistics last month. While NT prisoner numbers have been rising for years, the new data shows there was a further steep uptick in the daily imprisonment rate in the June quarter, with 2,810 people in custody during that period.The CLP campaigned hard on a tough-on-crime platform in the lead-up to the NT election last August, promising to do “whatever it takes to restore community safety”. Asked if the government had evidence its policies were putting downward pressure on crime rates, Ms Boothby shared an anecdotal account from tourists, which she described as a “tell-tale sign”. Asked if the government had done enough to address the root causes of criminal offending, Ms Boothby shared an anecdotal account from tourists that she described as a “tell-tale sign” the CLP’s policies were “starting to cut through”. Marie-Clare Boothby says positive feedback from tourists on “how it felt” in the territory demonstrates that her government’s policy approach is working.She said a couple visiting from interstate had stopped her in Darwin’s CBD a couple of months ago to tell her they’d noticed a “remarkable difference” in “how it felt” in the territory. “They were so thrilled to see that what they’d heard about the territory had turned around,” she said.NT Police data shows crime rates are moving in two directions, with violent crime increasing and property crime decreasing. NT police data shows an increase in the number of offences against the person — including assault, sexual assault, robbery and homicide — across the territory over the 13 months the CLP has been in government. Meanwhile, reports of property crime — including theft, burglary and property damage — have decreased. In the attorney-general’s electorate of Brennan in Palmerston, violent offending and property crime have both gone up since 2024. “I think what the community expects from a government is that they do what they said they were going to do,”However, Ms Boothby conceded there was “more work to do” around addressing the root causes of criminal offending and tackling domestic violence.he killed an Aboriginal man in a hit-and-run and boasted about it via text Scrutiny shifted to Ms Boothby after it was revealed the driver, Jake Danby, is her sister’s stepson — a relationship she failed to declare publicly when asked about the case at a press conference last month.Photo shows A white woman, short blonde hair, wearing glasses, white blazer and blue top. Standing in front of blurred green background The Northern Territory’s attorney-general is facing backlash after failing to publicly declare a potential conflict of interest over a fatal hit-and-run driver before court. Ms Boothby later confirmed she had declared the relationship to the now-Chief Minister Lia Finocchiaro when the CLP was in opposition. Asked if she regretted how she handled the situation, Ms Boothby said: “I understand the community interest in this case, but it is before the courts, so I can’t add any comment”. In a press conference on Thursday, Ms Boothby was repeatedly asked to confirm whether she had declared the potential conflict verbally or in writing, but she refused to clarify.Photo shows A police officer wearing a bomb disposal outfit working on a bad with a bomb disposal robot next to them.Photo shows A woman wearing headphones and flowers in her hair looks at her phone in a room of people wearing headphones.Photo shows A composite of an Asian woman with brown hair wearing pearls and holding up a finger, and Shinjiro Koizum, an Asian man smiling.Photo shows collage of document extracts layer over square colour photo of smiling female teacaher and young student wearing hatPhoto shows A police officer wearing a bomb disposal outfit working on a bad with a bomb disposal robot next to them.Photo shows collage of document extracts layer over square colour photo of smiling female teacaher and young student wearing hatPhoto shows A composite of an Asian woman with brown hair wearing pearls and holding up a finger, and Shinjiro Koizum, an Asian man smiling.Photo shows A police officer wearing a bomb disposal outfit working on a bad with a bomb disposal robot next to them.
Attorney General Marie-Clare Boothby NT Attorney General NT Attorney-General Closing The Gap Close The Gap NT Law And Order NT Tough On Crime Malarndirri Mccarthy Boothby Jake Danby Tough On Crime Law And Order Attorney-General Boothby
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