Australia’s Northern Territory has dedicated unprecedented spending on regional and remote police officers in light of increasing unrest in the region.
The state government has added $10.1 million (US$7.1 million) to the $510 million already invested into police, fire, and emergency services this year. It is a $6.4 million increase from last year’s police budget.
This will see the number of police officers on the ground increase by 21 and Aboriginal liaison officers, selected for their community-building resources of knowledge and cultural understanding, by 30.
Minister for Police, Fire, and Emergency Services Nicole Manison says the police deserve the best resources and infrastructure possible to support them through the tough jobs they have.
“We have backed them with the biggest police budget in Territory history,” Manison said in a release. “We know that maintaining local relationships and engagements is vital for our police and this investment is an important step in increasing safety out in our communities.”
“We will always back our police and the complex work that they do right across the territory, in some of the most remote regions in the country.”
Since March, a violent feud between rival clans in Wadeye, one of the largest indigenous communities in the Territory, has seen the use of weapons, including crossbows, steel bars, and spears unleashed on the community of about 3,000.
The feud has displaced 500, and damaged or destroyed a quarter of all homes in the community situated 400 kilometres southwest of Darwin.
Manison said the government is starting to provide emergency supplies to those displaced by the violence.
“We are working with those family groups about what is going to be the best option for them going forward,” she said. “It’s going to be a difficult few months.”
Wadeye is home to 22 clans and seven language groups. According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics, it is located in the second-most disadvantaged region in Australia.
