Arabic version: برلمان الإقليم الشمالي يقر إصلاحات على قوانين حماية الأطفال

According to ABC News, the Northern Territory parliament passed legislative changes to the child protection system late on Tuesday, with the Country Liberal Party describing the laws as the most significant overhaul of the Territory’s system in a generation. The amendment passed at 10:29pm.

Child Protection Minister Robyn Cahill said children had historically been failed by a system that acted too late and said the reforms would change that. She said the government was intervening earlier, supporting families to turn things around, and keeping Aboriginal children connected to kin and culture where it was safe to do so.

The CLP said the bill introduced proactive efforts requirements intended to ensure families receive support sooner. It also said the amendment modernised the Aboriginal Child Placement Principle, which recognises connection to country, culture and community as fundamental to the safety, wellbeing and identity of Indigenous children. The party had previously said a new universal principle would require decisions to be made in the best interests of every child, regardless of background.

Aboriginal leaders and human rights organisations criticised the changes, raising concerns they could weaken the Aboriginal Child Placement Principle and result in more child removals. Before the laws were debated, hundreds of people, including legal service representatives, domestic violence organisations and families with lived experience of the child protection system, protested outside Parliament House.

During Tuesday’s debate, parliament also received an independent review into the family circumstances of Kumanjayi Little Baby before her death. The report found serious departmental failures in the management of her case and made seven recommendations, including a comprehensive reset of the department’s operating model. Chief Minister Lia Finocchiaro said the existing child protection system could not remain as it was.