The Victorian Public Advocate has launched a major new reform agenda to ensure full human rights for Australians with a disability, including prisoners.
Public Advocate, Colleen Pearce said her report, Decision Time: Activating the rights of adults with cognitive disability, was aimed to ensure that Australia fully met its United Nations obligations for people with disability within five years.
“The Report recommends all prisoners entering facilities across the country be screened for cognitive disabilities as well as supported to understand and participate in their criminal justice journey, receive support services in prison, and provided with supported housing if found unfit to stand trial or not guilty for reasons of mental impairment,” Dr Pearce said.
“Most prisoners in Australia have a cognitive disability such as an intellectual disability, autism, acquired brain injury, dementia or mental illness and, as such, they need adequate support during their sentence,” she said.
“People with disabilities, particularly psychosocial or cognitive disabilities, are dramatically overrepresented in the criminal justice system in Australia – 18 per cent of the country’s population, but almost 50 per cent of people entering prison.”
Dr Pearce said her Report recommended practical changes to laws and policies around the nation to improve the human rights of all Australians with disability.
“By implementing the recommendations in this report, Australians with disability, including those in prison, will have their rights better met and Australia will be better able to meet its obligations under the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities to which it is a signatory,” she said.
She said her recommendations in the Report included that carers be legal ‘decision-supporters’ of their adult children with disability; public advocates and public guardians be given broad powers to investigate abuse, neglect and exploitation; there be fines for people who abuse their legal power to make decisions for others; people be able to make advance medical decisions; and changes to laws about decision-making for people with disability to reflect what they want.
The Public Advocate’s 136-page Report can be accessed at this PS News link.
