a law for all

Listen to this. A 55-year-old Australian adult male anally raped and bashed a fourteen year old girl. The girl was crying and told him that she was too young for sex. He was convicted and sentenced to four weeks jail. Four weeks!  Ands do you know why? Because he was an Aboriginal elder.

And to make this case even worse,  the Northern Territory Chief Justice, Brian Martin, had the temerity to say to the rapist: “I have a great deal of sympathy for you”.

He was talking about the differences between Aboriginal law and culture and Australian law.  What?  It’s OK for an Aboriginal elder to anally rape a 14-year-old girl under their culture?  And this was in front of his wife and children.

There are laws on this country for all Australians. Migrants, indigenous, whatever. For too long this country has ignored the abuse of Aboriginal wives and Aboriginal children. A crime is a crime. No matter the colour of your skin. And do-gooders and Politically Correct people have pussy-footed around this.

The sexual abuse of women and children in Aboriginal communities is epidemic. And has been ignored for too long.

We are talking about a fourteen year old girl here being violently abused by a 55-year-old man.

I am glad to see that the Federal Justice Minister, Chris Ellison, has expressed concerns about this case and the disgustingly light sentence for the rapist.

He said: “No matter what culture is involved there is no excuse for breaking Australian law, particularly when it involves the abuse of a child”.

And he is so right. These are the laws of our land. And they were when this rapist was born. Forget the so-called traditional Aboriginal crap.  A 55-year-old man anally raped a 14-year-old girl. He should have got ten years.

Thursday, September 1, 2005

©Copyright Derryn Hinch 2005