North Australian Aboriginal Justic Agency (NAAJA) is calling on the Northern Territory Government to commit to transparency about people being held in watch house–like conditions, and to end the use of such facilities for long-term detention.

NAAJA is also urging the Commonwealth Government to fund the Northern Territory’s National Preventive Mechanism under the Optional Protocol to the Convention Against Torture (OPCAT) and provide oversight of the NT Government’s implementation of the National Preventative Mechanism.

Portions of the Darwin City Watch  House have been renamed to the Darwin Transitional Custody Centre (DTCC) and transferred to control of the Department of Corrections.  NAAJA says people in custody are still being held for weeks at a time in watch house-like conditions the Northern Territory (NT) Ombudsman has condemned.

This is despite NT Government claiming that people are no longer being held for extended periods in watch houses.

NAAJA CEO Ben Grimes says “renaming the facility does not change the reality of what is happening inside it. NAAJA clients are being held in watch-house like cells for 4-5 weeks at a stretch”.

“Our clients describe being held there for weeks at a time, and in some cases for a month, in the kinds of conditions the Ombudsman NT has already made clear is not fit for anything other than for short term multi-day stays,” he said.

“They are being kept in small cells with 4-5 other people for around 23 hours a day. Sometimes they don’t see sunlight for days on end, and when they’re given time outside it’s in an enclosed concrete car park, exposed to vehicle fumes instead of access to fresh air and a proper exercise yard.

“The temperatures are distressingly cold, with even our visiting lawyers finding it uncomfortable for short periods. Almost all our clients in the facility describe being distressed and disoriented, with noticeable decline in their mental health and well-being.”

NAAJA is concerned there are no on-site medical staff and no routine health screening to identify and manage underlying health issues or medication needs.

This poses a significant risk to people’s health and well-being, and increases the risk of a death in custody, especially as many Aboriginal people entering custody have pre-existing health conditions and medication needs.

All clients NAAJA spoke with have said that their family contact numbers are not transferred to the DTCC, which means they cannot speak with family or be contacted by family. NAAJA questions whether this has been done deliberately to prevent the broader community from becoming aware of what is occurring in DTCC.

One man told NAAJA he was put on a bus and taken to the facility without being told where he was going. Another said he could not tell how long he had been there because he had not seen the sun, which is how he keeps track of time.

In another case, a client’s heavily pregnant wife was forced to take her young child across multiple correctional centres trying to find her partner, after arriving for a booked visit at a for-purpose correctional facility and being told correctional staff were not sure where he had been taken.

NAAJA lawyers are also reporting increasing difficulty locating clients after they have been transferred within the corrections system, including into and out of the DTCC. While legal visits can be booked, appointments are cancelled because clients have been moved to another facility without lawyers being notified.

When lawyers cannot locate clients in time to obtain instructions before court, matters may need to be adjourned, delaying proceedings and placing further pressure on an already over-stretched court system.

“This raises serious concerns not only about conditions people are experiencing, but also the inefficiencies being created by the high numbers of people being placed in custody without proper infrastructure and services. When lawyers can’t speak with clients, it is bad for everyone because matters can’t get resolved,” Mr Grimes said.

Ombudsman NT – Watch House Investigation Report (Nov 2025)

An investigation into horrific watch house conditions in 2025 by the Ombudsman NT recommended people in detention not be held in watch houses at all. It also recommended regular reporting to the Ombudsman NT on the use of watch houses, including monthly updates and weekly data on the number of people being held there, to strengthen transparency and accountability.

NAAJA says recent public statements by the Northern Territory Government contradict what is happening in practice.

“The Minister for Corrections (Hon Gerard Maley) has told Territorians that the NTG has stopped holding people in watch houses for extended periods,” Mr Grimes said.

“In reality, that is simply not true. They changed a name, but not their practices. We should be able to trust the Northern Territory Government to be honest and transparent about where people in detention are being held and what those conditions are like.”

NAAJA is worried the renaming and reclassification allows the NT Government to hide the true picture and side-step government requirements to provide information and data to the Ombudsman NT about people held in watch house facilities for more than seven days.

“Renaming the facility appears to be the government’s way of masking the fact that people are still being held in watch house settings because the government is arresting and remanding more people than our infrastructure can handle,” Mr Grimes said.

NAAJA says the situation in the DTCC demands immediate action to improve conditions for people in custody, and highlights the urgent need for stronger independent oversight of places of detention across the NT.

Optional Protocol to the Convention Against Torture

NAAJA is callling on the Commonwealth Government to fund the Northern Territory’s National Preventative Mechanism under the Optional Protocol to the Convention Against Torture (OPCAT), and for the NTG to implement it as a matter of urgency, so that minimum standards are properly monitored and upheld before more people and their families are harmed.

Commonwealth funding to the NT should also come with stringent oversight to ensure that the NT Government meets minimum standards.

International minimum standards, including the Mandela Rules, require access to healthcare on entry, regular communication with family, and at least one hour of open-air exercise each day.

NAAJA says the current situation falls well short of basic minimum standards for detention.

Australian Guiding Principles for Corrections also emphasise health and well-being, safety, and respect for people in custody.

Yet, clients in DTCC are describing prolonged detention without direct sunlight, disrupted family contact, no on-site medical staff, no routine health screening, and serious confusion about where they are and what is happening to them.

NAAJA says immediate safeguards and improvements are needed. NAAJA calls on the NT Government to, at a minimum:

• Ensure no-one is held in a watch-house like facility for more than 4 days, with a seven-day maximum in exceptional cases. Anyone held in custody for more than 7 days must be held in a purpose-built long-term detention facility.

• Immediate notification of solicitors and designated family contacts whenever a person is moved between watch houses or correctional facilities, including notification of the location where the person is being held.

• Ensure every person remanded into the care of the Department of Corrections is provided with a full health check and screening within 12 hours, by an on-site nurse.

• Ensure all family contacts travel with people who are moved between Corrections facilities, and that movement between facilities does not impact or reduce contact with families and lawyers.

“This is a concerning sign that not only is the Northern Territory Government not competent to properly care for people in detention, but they are also trying to hide the reality of what they are doing from Territorians,” Mr Grimes said.

 

 

Ends/… 

Media contact: 
Emily Murphy-O’Neill  
Media Strategy & Communications Officer 
North Australian Aboriginal Justice Agency 
Phone: 0455 556 412 
Email: emily.murphyoneill@naaja.org.au  
Website: https://www.naaja.org.au/