Important Reason Aussie Women Are Sharing #MeAtTen Pics

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Human rights groups and First Nations advocates are urging the government to raise the age of criminal responsibility from 10 to 14, a year after the decision to do so was deferred.

According to the Raise the Age coalition – a group of 47 organisations across medical, legal and human rights fields – close to 600 children aged 10 to 13 were locked up in the past year, with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children accounting for 65 per cent of these younger children in prisons.

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According to Australian Institute of Health and Welfare data, almost 800 young children aged 10 to 17 were in detention on an average night in the June quarter 2020.

Well-known Indigenous women, including actor Miranda Tapsell and Greens Senator Lidia Thorpe, are among the people who have shared the #MeAtTen hashtag on social media this week, supporting the Raise the Age coalition's renewed calls for state and federal Attorneys-General to take action after they were handed a report on July 26 last year recommending the age of criminal responsibility be raised.

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A post shared by Miranda Tapsell (@misstap)

This is me at 10. When I grew up, I wanted to be like my mum. In Australia, 10 year olds can still be jailed. The public are still watching, we’re still calling for the age of legal responsibility to be raised to at least 14 years of age.#MeAtTen #RaiseTheAge pic.twitter.com/IjumF7k6lq
— Senator Lidia Thorpe (@lidia__thorpe) July 27, 2021

This is me at 10yrs old with my brothers Shaun (left) and Ryan (middle) #MeAtTen. Aboriginal kids belong in their communities thriving in culture and identity not behind bars. Join us in calling on govts across the country to #RaiseTheAge of criminal responsibility 🖤💛❤️ pic.twitter.com/4tKoTIxIAX
— Antoinette Braybrook (@BraybrookA) July 26, 2021

Here's #MeAtTen 3rd from right. I COULD NOT WAIT to be 10 so I could play in the church netball team. 10 year olds should be hanging out with other kids and looking forward to experiencing new things and NOT be in prison. We can fix this. #ChangeTheAge of criminal responsibility. pic.twitter.com/oL3RFQRqbb
— 💧 🔥 😷 🐦 Bird on the Wire (aka Leanne Weber) (@DrLWeber1) July 27, 2021

This is me & @lilymandarin on my 10th birthday (just a few days before hers) in a cold park in Melbourne. #MeAtTen #RaiseTheAge Children belong in classrooms & playgrounds, not in handcuffs, courtrooms or prison cells.

Sign, share, tweet. https://t.co/fOlg3al05S pic.twitter.com/mYnu74FyMi
— Penelope Joy (@LopeyPen) July 27, 2021

This is #MeAtTen. In 2020, 499 babies aged 10-13 were incarcerated in Aus.

A year ago, the attorneys-general had a chance to #RaiseTheAge and they didn’t - they said they needed more time to look into it.

A year on, they should make that work public so we know what’s going on. pic.twitter.com/ELKokShRe4
— Abigail Lewis (@AbigailLLew) July 27, 2021

When the Attorneys-General were handed the report last year, they deferred making a decision on raising the age, saying more time was needed to consider alternatives to incarceration.

However, the coalition claims the government hasn't provided a public update on its progress since.

"When the then council of attorneys-general met 12 months ago, it outlined the need for further work to occur 'regarding the need for adequate processes and services for children who exhibit offending behaviour'," the 47 organisations wrote.

"What specific work has been undertaken, and by whom, in the past 12 months to identify adequate processes and services for children who exhibit offending behaviour?"

A spokesperson for the federal Attorney-General, Michaelia Cash, told The Guardian that it was an issue for each state and territory to decide.

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“Ultimately, it will be a decision for each jurisdiction whether to raise the minimum age of criminal responsibility. This is primarily an issue for states and territories, as the overwhelming majority of offences committed by children are state and territory, not Commonwealth, offences," read the statement.

“The Australian Government continues to engage with jurisdictions to ensure treatment of young people in detention meets all expectations for the safety and protection of children under government care.”

So far the Australian Capital Territory is the only state or territory that has committed to raising the age and will be drafting new legislation later this year.