Wednesday, 27 August 2025

Optional Protocol to the Convention against Torture and other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment

Rachel PAYNE (South-Eastern Metropolitan) (18:47): (1884) My adjournment matter is for the Attorney-General, and the action I seek is for the urgent implementation of the optional protocol to the convention against torture known as OPCAT. By ratifying OPCAT, Australia has agreed to put in place mechanisms to prevent torture and inhumane treatment in places of detention. To fulfil this commitment alongside the Commonwealth government, state and territory governments have been tasked with designating their own independent national preventative mechanism known as an NPM. The NPM will conduct proactive inspections of all places of detention and closed environments. Victoria, Queensland and New South Wales are the only jurisdictions in Australia that have failed to designate their NPM. In 2023 the failures led to the subcommittee on the prevention of torture terminating its visit to Australia. Rwanda is the only other country ever to have such visits terminated. The Yoorrook Justice Commission, numerous inquiries and Ombudsman reports all show that Victoria’s prison system is failing. Greater oversight and scrutiny are needed to protect vulnerable communities, including young people and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders. Time is of the essence. OPCAT must be urgently implemented in Victoria.

This week Labor and the Liberals worked together to pass the second tranche of Victoria’s tough bail laws. After the first tranche was passed earlier this year, we saw hundreds more people forced into the criminal justice system. Following the changes proposed in the second tranche, we expect the number of incarcerated Victorians to soar even further. At the Dame Phyllis Frost Centre we have already seen what happens when staffing is unable to meet the increasing demand – never-ending lockdowns, severely restricted movement and difficulties accessing essential legal and medical appointments. This has had a profound effect on the social and emotional wellbeing of the women at the centre and their ability to be properly discharged. If the Allan Labor government want full prisons, then they must implement OPCAT in full.

For years a wide range of stakeholders have been calling for Victoria to establish an NPM. In response, the Allan Labor government has consistently blamed a lack of Commonwealth funding. This excuse continues despite a federal Labor government being in power since 2022. So I ask: will the Attorney-General implement OPCAT as a measure of urgency?