Nine who gang raped girl, 10, escape jail
Scubascott
Posts: 815
This is all kinds of fucked
http://www.guardian.co.uk/australia/story/0,,2225389,00.html
Furious Aboriginal leaders call for judge to step down
· Anger at claim that victim 'probably agreed' to sex
Barbara McMahon in Sydney
Tuesday December 11, 2007
The Guardian
A judge in Australia was facing calls to step down yesterday after she failed to jail nine males who admitted gang-raping a 10-year-old girl in an Aboriginal community in 2005, saying the victim "probably agreed" to have sex with them.
Sarah Bradley, a Cairns-based district court judge, gave suspended sentences and probation orders to three adults, aged 17 to 26, one of whom was a repeat sex offender, and six juveniles, aged 14 to 16.
The lenient sentencing was greeted with outrage and disbelief across Australia, which has been wrestling with the problem of child sex abuse in indigenous communities after a report, Little Children Are Sacred, earlier this year said the problem was widespread and endemic.
Kevin Rudd, the new Labor prime minister, said he was "appalled and disgusted" by the details of the case. Queensland's attorney general, Kerry Shine, will appeal against the judge's decision. Indigenous leaders said it sent a terrible message to vulnerable girls and women living in fear in Australia's indigenous communities.
"If this was a white girl in white suburban Brisbane ... there's no way they would have walked out of court," said a child protection campaigner, Hetty Johnston.
Boni Robertson, an academic, called for the judge to step down while there was an inquiry. "It's undermined everything we have worked for over the last 10 years to get our women justice in this country," she said.
The assault happened in Aurukun on Cape York, which has a history of rioting and drunken violence. Some of the girl's attackers are said to be from prominent families in the area, while she comes from a less privileged background.
News of the sentences, handed out in October and early November, has already led to simmering tensions within the community. In a recent outbreak of violence, rival gangs fought with sticks and spears.
Bradley's handling of the case was revealed by the Australian newspaper. In passing sentence, she said that she accepted the girl involved "was not forced and ... probably agreed to have sex with all of you but you were taking advantage of a 10-year-old girl and she needs to be protected". The judge reminded the group of nine that it is an offence to have sex with a girl under the age of 16.
Facing allegations that Australia's justice system was failing children, the attorney general met with the director of public prosecutions, Leanne Clare, yesterday to review the case. "I am truly horrified by the circumstances of these offences," Shine said, adding that the law should be consistent in its application among indigenous and white communities.
The deputy opposition leader in Queensland, Mark McArdle, also called for an inquiry. "Children cannot give their consent," he said.
The state premier, Anna Bligh, said all sexual offences sentences arising out of Cape York during the past two years would be reviewed. "The nature of the sentences in this case are so far from community expectations I have to say I am alarmed, and I am not prepared to write this off as an unusual one-off case," she said.
Bligh added that the girl, who had been returned to the community after being put in foster care, was once more back in foster care, receiving medical and other treatment, and is reportedly doing well.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/australia/story/0,,2225389,00.html
Furious Aboriginal leaders call for judge to step down
· Anger at claim that victim 'probably agreed' to sex
Barbara McMahon in Sydney
Tuesday December 11, 2007
The Guardian
A judge in Australia was facing calls to step down yesterday after she failed to jail nine males who admitted gang-raping a 10-year-old girl in an Aboriginal community in 2005, saying the victim "probably agreed" to have sex with them.
Sarah Bradley, a Cairns-based district court judge, gave suspended sentences and probation orders to three adults, aged 17 to 26, one of whom was a repeat sex offender, and six juveniles, aged 14 to 16.
The lenient sentencing was greeted with outrage and disbelief across Australia, which has been wrestling with the problem of child sex abuse in indigenous communities after a report, Little Children Are Sacred, earlier this year said the problem was widespread and endemic.
Kevin Rudd, the new Labor prime minister, said he was "appalled and disgusted" by the details of the case. Queensland's attorney general, Kerry Shine, will appeal against the judge's decision. Indigenous leaders said it sent a terrible message to vulnerable girls and women living in fear in Australia's indigenous communities.
"If this was a white girl in white suburban Brisbane ... there's no way they would have walked out of court," said a child protection campaigner, Hetty Johnston.
Boni Robertson, an academic, called for the judge to step down while there was an inquiry. "It's undermined everything we have worked for over the last 10 years to get our women justice in this country," she said.
The assault happened in Aurukun on Cape York, which has a history of rioting and drunken violence. Some of the girl's attackers are said to be from prominent families in the area, while she comes from a less privileged background.
News of the sentences, handed out in October and early November, has already led to simmering tensions within the community. In a recent outbreak of violence, rival gangs fought with sticks and spears.
Bradley's handling of the case was revealed by the Australian newspaper. In passing sentence, she said that she accepted the girl involved "was not forced and ... probably agreed to have sex with all of you but you were taking advantage of a 10-year-old girl and she needs to be protected". The judge reminded the group of nine that it is an offence to have sex with a girl under the age of 16.
Facing allegations that Australia's justice system was failing children, the attorney general met with the director of public prosecutions, Leanne Clare, yesterday to review the case. "I am truly horrified by the circumstances of these offences," Shine said, adding that the law should be consistent in its application among indigenous and white communities.
The deputy opposition leader in Queensland, Mark McArdle, also called for an inquiry. "Children cannot give their consent," he said.
The state premier, Anna Bligh, said all sexual offences sentences arising out of Cape York during the past two years would be reviewed. "The nature of the sentences in this case are so far from community expectations I have to say I am alarmed, and I am not prepared to write this off as an unusual one-off case," she said.
Bligh added that the girl, who had been returned to the community after being put in foster care, was once more back in foster care, receiving medical and other treatment, and is reportedly doing well.
It doesn't matter if you're male, female, or confused; black, white, brown, red, green, yellow; gay, lesbian; redneck cop, stoned; ugly; military style, doggy style; fat, rich or poor; vegetarian or cannibal; bum, hippie, virgin; famous or drunk-you're either an asshole or you're not!
-C Addison
-C Addison
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That sums it up pretty well.
naděje umírá poslední
Verona??? it's all surmountable
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Wembley? We all believe!
Copenhagen?? your light made us stars
Chicago 07? And love
What a different life
Had I not found this love with you
and reveling in it's loyalty. It's made by forming coalitions
over specific principles, goals, and policies.
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Actually, so did the prosecution. The lead prosecutor has been stood down pending an inquiry. It appears that he was of the mentality that it was not so serious and that she was a willing participant.
oh, wait...
"If this was a white girl in white suburban Brisbane ... there's no way they would have walked out of court," said a child protection campaigner, Hetty Johnston
-C Addison
That is insane.
9 males in their teens and 20's?? What is wrong with these people???
It sounds like that poor girl didn't have a chance when ever her defense atty was saying she offered up consent.
And I don't feel right when you're gone away
It´s a shit, shit... And the judge is a woman. I´m not sure if is the worst or not, but is very difficult understand how the mind female can works (or not) in this way. In Brasil, recently, one judge -- woman -- allowed the police transfered one girl teenager to one male cell, because the jail in that city -- Pará´s state -- no have female cells. Can you imagine what happens with that girl? Was one scandal and until the president of the Republic made one protest. What hell that judges has one her/his mind? They dont have childrens?
Verona??? it's all surmountable
Dublin 23.08.06 "The beauty of Ireland, right there!"
Wembley? We all believe!
Copenhagen?? your light made us stars
Chicago 07? And love
What a different life
Had I not found this love with you
Makes me think of the woman that was pack raped by a bunch of middle Eastern men in Sydney. They've basically locked them up and thrown away the key(rightly so). But when its an Aboriginal girl they walk free. This cannot be the end of it surely.
If I remember correctly there was talk of that girl having initally given consent too wasn't there?
Not that it shoud matter in this case. The girl is ten years old. She can't give consent. Maybe they think they are taking cultural sensitivites into account or something. Maybe that argument would fly if she ahd been 14 or 15, but for fuck's sake. A ten year old? Surely that's not acceptable in any culture.
-C Addison
Because I know the QLD premier was talking about looking at all the judge's cases for the past 2 years the other night. I'm thinking that yes, this as been a massive miscarriage of justice but it seems the wheels are turning to try to rectify it.
*~You're IT Bert!~*
Hold on to the thread
The currents will shift
I hope so. I haven't kept up the details of this one, but I was shocked when I first heard the story.
I have enough faith in our system to believe that this will be fixed, but the fact that it ever happened in the first place is deeply disturbing.
-C Addison
This is clear evidence that there is a totally different set of laws for these people. Might I also point out that some of the screamers here were some of the objectors to Howard's "interference" in these communities.
Also, had that girl been "stolen" and placed with a protective family, instead of being left in teh loving protective care of her own community, this would not have happened.
This is all kinds of fucked up alright.
I think Kevin Rudd should "apologise" to the criminals who did this, for troubling them with a court appearance. That wil make things right. (Sarcasm, just making sure you all got that)
Is the penny starting to drop yet as to why the "stolen generation" events actually occurred ????
It's becasue lawyers and judges only care about process, they do not care about outcomes. They assume that following process will always produce a good outcome, but this fuck-up proves it does not.
Yes I agree. And I've not been keeping up with it either but it does need to be rectified and it should never have been allowed to play out that way in the first place.
*~You're IT Bert!~*
Hold on to the thread
The currents will shift
My understanding is that that is exactly what happened. The girl had been moved away from her own parents into the care of a foster family, and then this happened.
What are you getting at anyway? That all aboriginal people are unfit to raise kids? That we should take them all away and raise them in white suburbia? Great idea. That'll work. Hang on. Didn't someone try that before?. . . .
-C Addison
Hope that's not directed at me and if it is you should just say so luce. Because I stand by my opinion that the Howard government's intervention was not motivated by their willingness to do anything about the aboriginal situation and more to do with being "seen" to be doing something and probably a lot more about finding a way to aquire the land more than anything. Or at least have more power over it. Otherwise why did they need to consult with the mining companies?
And you'll never convince me that "the stolen generation" had to be stolen either.
Yeah, there are one set of laws for aboriginals and one for everyone else but that's where we need to be making change.
*~You're IT Bert!~*
Hold on to the thread
The currents will shift
Nah, it wasn't directed at anyone in particular.
If you can't see that the stolen generation was not justified, then you maybe need to actually go and visit a community for a bit and see how the children live there.
Ironically, all the competent leaders they have, who have effected more change than anything, were mostly from the stolen generation.
I still fail to see how the Howard intervention was such a token effort. Why would they not be motivated to make a real difference ? Would not that cover tham in glory, when everyone else failed.
Truth is, zillions have been pissed down the drain on this problem, because the problem is a lack of engagement by the poeple in a solution.
While charity minded and "pastoral" minded bleeding hearts continue to encourage victim behaviour, nothing will happen.
I challenge you to go to a community for a month and then see how you feel.
I firmly believe rapists should be sentanced to death.
In this case the judge right along with them for condoning the rape.
I don't care what country or color.
Sorry, I'm confused.
I agree that there's been far too much money thrown at the problem and not nearly enough real solutions found, but I view the Stolen generation pretty much the same way I view all those poor bloody kids that where taken from their young mothers in the 50s and 60s and put up for adoption. Should never have happened.
There's been far too much messing with the family unit. So if there are people that are part of the stolen generation that are now leaders and they're contributing to the solutions then that's a good thing and we should spend more time with them working out what else needs to happen. But taking the kids away from their parents and not doing anything other than that is never a solution. It just makes things worse.
As to the Howard government intervention well perhaps we'll never know the motivations, or what really went on. Probably any FOI documents that come up will be at least 20 years away and heavily censored if we do get them anyway, so who's to say? It just seemed like an odd way to go about it to me and would have been completely unacceptable if they'd rocked up to Carlton or St Kilda with the military and said to a whole bunch of whites or european australians, "right, we're taking over." Don't you think?
Oh and I hardly think me rocking up for a month is going to help the situation any.
*~You're IT Bert!~*
Hold on to the thread
The currents will shift
Reading from the paper in front of me, "the departmenttook her from a safe foster home in Cairns and returned her to the Aurukun community, where she was subsequently gang-raped".
Sadly, too many of the parents are incompetent.
My biggest problem is that anything to do with Aboriginals is never looked at objectively. There is always, ALWAYS a subjective hysteria which prevents any worthwhile action or solutions.
It is actually possible that this girl was consensual, because children raised there have a completely fdifferent set of reference pints to you or I. Before you scream at me about that, I have met a girl who was deaf, and she was raped daily by whoever. She never objected, or thought it was abnormal, because to was a completely usual part of fher daily existence, and always had been.
That in itself is intolerably outrageous, but it is actually possible and crediible.
You really have to spend time out there to understand this.
That is all.
Actually I'd agree with that. I quite believe it actually. And it is intolerably outrageous.
*~You're IT Bert!~*
Hold on to the thread
The currents will shift
my understand is this, which was in the original article you posted.
'Bligh added that the girl, who had been returned to the community after being put in foster care, was once more back in foster care, receiving medical and other treatment, and is reportedly doing well'.
It has also been reported from other outlets that in 2006, an officer from the Child Safety department was dismissed after placing the girl back into the Aurukun community from foster care.
Of course, and I know you agree with this, it was still rape, because she was 10, and while she may not have known the significance of what was happening, the rapists surely did.
Unless there were juvenile males who also thought nothing abnormal was happening, becasue of teh circumstances of their upbringing, which is another outrage in itself.
Everything about this whole situation is odious.
Even the DOCS worker being dismissed for returning her is odious, becasue if that person had not, he/she nay have been accused of keeping teh child away unreasonably, or "stealing" it.
Glad I'm not involved in this shitfight, there is no wins for anyone here.
Yes, and I'd agree with all that you've said here too lucy.
It's just a horrible, vile situation from start to finish AND probably just the tip of the iceberg in terms of what's really going on. Both in terms of what's happening in aboriginal communities and in terms of DOCS.
Unfortunately I can't see it getting better before it gets a lot worse to be honest. So much of what is going on is systemic and been going on for so long that it's going to be quite the battle to fix it.
*~You're IT Bert!~*
Hold on to the thread
The currents will shift
The solution needs to come form within. Kids need good role models and there is too little of that.
It won't happen in my lifetime.
I actually believe that teh existing communities almsot need to be completely destroyed.
They are typically in isolated places, with no surrounding infrastructure, littel employment, and a legion of problems caused by teh physical and social isolation and decades of disrepair and neglect.
A completely clean sheet is needed.