Port Lincoln Magistrates Court

The Hon. R.B. MARTIN (14:46): My question is to the Attorney-General. Will the minister please inform the chamber about his recent visit to the Port Lincoln Magistrates Court?

The Hon. K.J. MAHER (Minister for Aboriginal Affairs, Attorney-General, Minister for Industrial Relations and Public Sector) (14:46): I thank the honourable member for his question. I would be most delighted to provide an answer to him and to the chamber. On my recent visit to Port Lincoln, I had the opportunity to meet with His Honour Paul Foley, local elder Haydn Davey and two local lawyers of the Magistrates Court.

A particular focus of the discussion was the progress of the recently legislated Nunga Court, which was an election commitment we made as a Labor opposition and progressed when we came to government that came into effect last year enshrining the practice of the Nunga Court into legislation in South Australia.

The Nunga Court is a division of the Magistrates Court and is currently operating in courts at Port Adelaide and Murray Bridge, where they have been operating in some form or another since I think 1998 as the first such courts anywhere in Australia, and also Maitland and now at Port Lincoln. At Maitland, it is known as the Narungga Court.

The Port Lincoln location is the most recent of the Nunga Courts and is the first to begin operation since the enshrining of the Nunga Court in legislation last year. The first sitting commenced in the second half of last year of the Nunga Court in Port Lincoln. The state's Nunga Courts allow for Aboriginal communities to participate in the sentencing process through court elders or respected persons sitting with the magistrate in matters that can be finalised in the Magistrates Court and where an Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander person has pleaded guilty.

It was a great opportunity to hear from local elders, such as Mr Davey, who sits as a respected elder through the sentencing process, and I am happy to report that the feedback provided on the Nunga Court and its process is widely supported by the community in the region and by legal practitioners in the region. The importance of this process was widely acknowledged, particularly in that it gives a magistrate the chance to hear and consider advice on relevant cultural and community matters that may assist in the sentencing process.

In addition, having the magistrate advised on relevant cultural and community matters can contribute to increased confidence of Aboriginal people in the criminal justice system right around South Australia and particularly in that region.

I would like to commend those within Port Lincoln and the wider region who are involved in this important initiative: the Aboriginal justice liaison officers, those who are involved with the Port Lincoln Magistrates Court and elders like Haydn Davey. I look forward to hearing about the Nunga Court's continued impact and progress in the future, ensuring cultural and community knowledge forms part of our sentencing proceedings in South Australia.