Guards 'threatening Dylan Voller with further abuse if he speaks': mother
The young Aboriginal man at the centre of the Northern Territory's juvenile detention centre abuse scandal is threatening to go on a hunger strike fearing repercussions from guards if he speaks at the royal commission.
Pictures of a hooded Dylan Voller lashed to a chair at Darwin's notorious Don Dale Youth Detention Centre triggered a royal commission after they were shown on Four Corners earlier this year.
Voller, 18, who has since moved to the Darwin Correctional Centre for adults, is due to give evidence at the commission this week.
However, his mother Joanne Voller said her son was terrified about fronting the commission because some of the guards at the centre have threatened him with violence if he speaks.
"I have never seen my son so scared in all of his life. He has said he will start a hunger strike to fight for his own safety," Ms Voller said in a statement.
"They are saying he may not even be allowed to attend court to speak with the Royal Commission and may have to give evidence via video link, under the eye of his abusers. He is too scared to do this."
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"The government promised change with this Royal Commission, but my son has just been put in further danger. When will this nightmare end."
The statement said at least four of the guards involved in Voller's tear-gassing are now working at the Darwin centre and are "continually tormenting Dylan".
"Some have threatened to have him bashed if he speaks out about his treatment," the statement said.
Padraic Gibson, of the Jumbunna Indigenous House of Learning at UTS, said the royal commission's integrity would take a hit if the NT government continued to allow a key witness to be intimidated by the very people he will be testifying against.
"Many of these guards should have been sacked long ago for their torture of Aboriginal children," said Mr Gibson, who has been assisting the Voller family since the scandal broke.
"The fact that they remain not only employed, but tasked with guarding Dylan, speaks volumes about the continuing racism and disrespect for Aboriginal lives that characterises the 'corrections' system.
"Dylan must be set free immediately," he said.
NT Justice Minister Natasha Fyles said she had spoken with the Corrections Commissioner Mark Payne who informed her the "correct procedures are being followed and prisoner safety is paramount", Fairfax reports.
Further issues regarding prisoner safety and wellbeing should be raised with the independent ombudsman, she said.
Senior counsel assisting the commission Tony McAvoy SC told the commission as it resumed on Monday that special arrangements were in place to protect vulnerable witnesses.
They will be able to have their identities kept secret, give evidence during closed sessions and have people on hand to support them.
"Our first priority is to protect them," Mr McAvoy said.
Keith Hamburger, a prison system expert who gave evidence to the royal commission this week, said Indigenous children made up 95 per cent of juvenile detainees and the centres needed to be completely overhauled, the ABC has reported.
"Institutions are not normal. If you are a young person coming from a free society into an institution it is a complete shock in that sense," said Mr Hamburger, who in the 1990s led major reforms in Queensland's prison system.
He suggested therapy pets and open facilities – as opposed to isolation – could have huge benefits for young offenders.
"It would be nice if children could have access to pets," he told the commission.
"Provided a secure perimeter with plenty of space, that is the type of environment I would like to see."
With AAP
