Qld imprisonment rate of female indigenous offenders triples in 14 years

Of that number, Indigenous women experienced the highest increase in imprisonment rates –tripling from 178 to 576.

A panel member in the report reflected on the increase of women in prison.

“It’s seriously poverty and trauma and self-medicating,” they said. “Being sentenced isn’t going to change the person’s circumstances. They are still in the struggle, whether it be an emotional or mental struggle, or poverty, or both.”

Waka Waka council member Bevan Costello, chair of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander advisory panel, said the report included stories about the chronic disadvantage experienced by Indigenous people.

“It is important for everyone to understand the history, the different upbringing and lifestyle of…