Sunday 31 July 2016

Hundreds rally in Australia over juvenile 'torture' footage

Demonstrators gathered in major cities across Australia

Hundreds of people have rallied in cities across Australia following allegations of abuse against boys in juvenile detention.

Demonstrators gathered in Melbourne, Sydney and Brisbane to express shock at footage showing indigenous boys being tear-gassed.

The video also shows a boy wearing a "spit hood" while cuffed to a chair.

Australia's Prime Minister, Malcolm Turnbull, has called for an investigation.
However, he rejected calls for a broader national inquiry.
A youth detainee being forcibly stripped by prison guards in the NT

At one stage he was strapped to a restraint chair while wearing a hood for almost two hours. He was also among a group of six children who were subdued with tear gas.

The United Nations Human Rights Commission said it was shocked by the footage.

"We encourage the Government to extend the scope of the investigation... to establish that such appalling treatment is not taking place in any other place of detention in Australia," it said in a statement - adding that authorities should compensate the children.

The six boys are seeking damages for mistreatment, according to ABC.

Indigenous people represent about 3% of Australia's population but are 26 times more likely to be in detention than non-Indigenous youth, according to theAustralian Institute of Health and Welfare.

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