The death of George Floyd in the United States has sparked outrage in another continent, Australia. Where 'Black Lives Matter' protests have started all over the country.
However, the Australian protesters are not only expressing solidarity with the protesters in the United States, but also as an opportunity to express their outrage at the deaths of indigenous people in custody in the country.
Thousands of people took part in the 'Black Lives Matter' movement in Sydney on Saturday. Leetona Dungay led the movement (Mother of David Dungay, an aboriginal man, died in prison five years ago).
Even after a major investigation into these incidents began three decades ago, there is still no data available.
In 1986, the "Committee to Defend Black Rights" found that one indigenous person died in custody every 11 days.
This led to the formation of a royal commission in 1991, which began investigating the deaths of 99 indigenous peoples in prisons.
At the end of that search more than three hundred recommendations were made, although most of them were not implemented. Recent reviews have also criticized them as inadequate or misleading.
Analysts at the Guardian found that at least 432 tribals had died in custody since the investigation.
In a word, extensively.
According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics, indigenous people make up 30 per cent of the total inmates in prisons, although they are only three per cent of the total population.
These are four times as many African-American prisoners in US prisons.
According to a recent study, Indigenous Australians are the most incarcerated people in the world - although the study found no data on many prisons in the world.
There had been protests in Australia over the deaths of Indigenous people in custody in the past. Here are some of the ones discussed:
Kumanjayi Walker, 19 - was shot dead while being arrested in a remote village in November last year.
Tania Day, 55 - He was seriously injured in police custody after being arrested in 2017 on charges of falling asleep on a train after drinking alcohol.
David Dungay, 26 - He died after being beaten by five police officers at a Sydney jail. At that moment, he kept saying in a tearful voice, 'I can't breathe.'
Ms Dhu, 22 - was diagnosed with septicemia and pneumonia while in police custody in 2014. An autopsy later revealed that she had been attacked because of inhumane treatment by police officers.
In 2004, riots broke out in the Redfern suburb of Sydney following the death of 18-year-old TJ Hickey. The teenager died during a police operation.
Riots broke out on Palm Island in Queensland the same year after Cameron Doomadgee died in police custody from serious injuries.
No police officer has been convicted of killing indigenous people in custody in Australia.
A police officer is currently on trial for the murder of Kumanjayi Walker. In a court of law, Constable Zachary Rolfe pleaded not guilty. Another officer, whose name has not been released for legal reasons, has denied killing Joyce Clarke, a 29-year-old Aboriginal woman.
Last Monday, Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison said that although Australia has many flaws, it is blessed to be in a wonderful country like Australia, just look at the looting and arson that has taken place in the United States.
He added, however, that he was not underestimating the number of indigenous deaths in custody in the country.
But his remarks have been ridiculed by many tribal and human rights activists, who have long complained that the government is not paying attention to their problems.
"Like so many others, this prime minister is ignoring the deaths of indigenous peoples in custody," said Nerita Waight, a member of the National Indigenous and Torres Strait Islander Legal Services.
Many such incidents have failed to get the attention of the media or the public. Critics say Floyd's death are now more important than the deaths in Australia.
However, they also think that it has attracted more attention to the Australian policing system. The arrest of an Indigenous teenager in Sydney this week has drawn widespread criticism.
- Translated from BBC Bangla
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