Page 3163 - Week 12 - Wednesday, 18 November 1992
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He identifies intravenous drug use, unprotected sex, and violent assault and tattooing as some of those activities.
The custodial environment is one that we as members have a limited understanding of. However, we need to act responsibly to extend to Remand Centre detainees the same assistance and information about the prevention of HIV/AIDS and the transmission of other sexually transmitted diseases that is available to members of the public. The dilemma, as I have previously stated, is that custodial officers do not see themselves as having that role, but see their role as ensuring that only legal activities take place within the centre. Unless we are to isolate people and keep them separate from each other, allowing no personal contact or interaction, we cannot prevent all those ingenious or desperate enough from taking drugs. Similarly, sexual intercourse has occurred in the most unlikely places since time immemorial and will not be stopped from occurring in the Remand Centre, however valiantly the staff may try to enforce current rules prohibiting sexual activity between remandees.
Concern exists that by distributing condoms they could in turn be used as weapons or to conceal contraband in body cavities. These fears need to be addressed but should not ultimately prevent the urgent need to bring AIDS awareness to the attention of Remand Centre inmates. The added benefit, of course, is that custodial officers are also at reduced risk if the Remand Centre population is better informed and protected against HIV infection.
What we can do by the passage of this amendment Bill is set an example - to show those prison systems that do not provide protection for inmates in the rest of the country that it is not irresponsible to have detainees provided with condoms, lubricant and bleach so that if they do engage in risk taking behaviour they can protect themselves. Some States, such as New South Wales and Victoria, have gone to some lengths to make drug taking less risky by providing bleach to inmates, and New South Wales has introduced a peer education scheme which has been of benefit in teaching prisoners about AIDS and risk taking activities. These steps go part of the way to addressing the issues of risk taking behaviour but still deny that sexual activity takes place. Ultimately, of course, when detainees return to the community, there is less likelihood that they will have been exposed to the AIDS virus if they are able, while in custody, to protect themselves.
Madam Speaker, thus far I have focused on HIV/AIDS in referring to sexually transmitted diseases. However, HIV is only one of these and, while considered to be the most lethal, it is not as contagious as hepatitis A, B or C. So, for example, by taking no action to distribute AIDS/STD kits on arrival we leave the people in detention, who are still innocent in the eyes of the law, at risk of disease during their time in the centre.
Madam Speaker, this amendment Bill could have required that custodial officers be forced to distribute condoms, lubricant and bleach which have been identified as necessary elements of the AIDS/STD kits. As has been shown in New South Wales, this would be against the general wishes of the custodial officers themselves, some of whom see this role as a conflict of interest - a condoning of what they see as illicit or illegal activity. By adopting this approach there undoubtedly would be much acrimony and possibly industrial action and overall ill will generated. Custodial officers are not counsellors, so by ignoring the
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