 'Racism' leads to Palm riot trial shift by Ian Gerard 15th july 2006
THE trial of an alleged ringleader in the Palm Island riots has been moved from Townsville to Brisbane on the grounds it would be difficult to find a jury in the north Queensland city that was not racist. The survey, commissioned by Mr Wotton's legal team, also showed that less than 5 per cent of the city's residents had a positive attitude towards Palm Island's Aboriginal residents, with one respondent labelling them "mongrel dogs". Yesterday's decision could lead to a flood of applications from Aborigines awaiting trial in Townsville to have their cases moved to another jurisdiction and spark appeals from indigenous people already convicted. It remains to be seen whether the other 20 Palm Island Aborigines accused of rioting will apply to have their trials heard in Brisbane. "How can an Aboriginal person be tried fairly by a Townsville jury?" Mr Wotton's Sydney solicitor Stewart Levitt said after yesterday's decision. "These results prove that the public attitudes towards Aborigines in north Queensland are hostile and prejudiced. "The level of prejudice that was displayed against Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders would certainly support others making similar applications." Relations between whites and Aborigines in Townsville, which has one of the country's largest indigenous communities, have been tense since the November 2004 death in custody of Palm Island man Mulrunji Doomadgee. Palm Island is just a few kilometres from Townsville. Doomadgee was found dead in a cell at the island's police watchhouse. Police said he fell on a concrete step, but a post-mortem examination revealed he had four broken ribs and a torn liver. The autopsy results sparked rioting on the island. The courthouse, police station and barracks were set alight and police were beseiged. Reinforcements from Townsville eventually rescued the officers. The survey, by research house AEC Group, questioned about 400 people from Townsville about a range of issues relating to Mr Wotton and Palm Island Aboriginal people. More than half the respondents agreed they had negative preconceived notions about Mr Wotton that they would be unable to ignore during a trial. Most of those who were aware of the Palm Island riots thought they were alcohol-related and the Aborigines who took part were criminally responsible. "In my opinion they are a protected species," one Townsville resident said in response to survey questions. "You can't touch them, you can't kick them, you can't turn your back on them. They are mongrel dogs." Mr Levitt said: "There is certainly a preponderance of racist sentiment in Townsville." Queensland Attorney-General Linda Lavarch refused to comment yesterday.
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