Media release re: Concern over Misleading and Harmful Statements on Transgender Prisoners

As the Northern Territory Anti-Discrimination Commissioner, I express serious concerns about recent public comments made by the Chief Minister Lia Finocchiaro regarding banning of transgender women in women’s prisons.

The comments are alarmist, unsupported by evidence from the NT, and risk inflaming prejudice and hostility toward trans Territorians. They also fail to acknowledge the significant, long-documented safety risks faced by transgender prisoners in men’s units at NT correctional facilities.

Factual Inaccuracy and Risk of Harm

The Commission understands from NT Department of Corrections that no trans women are currently placed within women’s correctional units in the Northern Territory. Under existing departmental policy as referred to by the NT News today — Management of Trans, Gender Diverse or Intersex Prisoners (Directive 2.4.10, June 2021) — all placement decisions are made individually by the General Manager of the correctional centre, in consultation with health practitioners and the prisoner concerned. According to a source, while placed at the men’s unit in a single cell, trans women prisoners are provided similar ‘entitlements’ to women in the women’s unit.

When making placement decisions for trans prisoners, the current policy already requires a comprehensive risk assessment, taking into account safety, medical advice, and the prisoner’s lived gender identity. The General Manager does not currently make placement decisions based solely on the prisoner’s self-identification.

Public statements suggesting that trans women are a safety threat to others in custody are transmisogynistic and contrary to the evidence. National and international data show that trans women are at a far higher risk of sexual assault, harassment and self-harm when housed in men’s units.

The Anti-Discrimination Act 1992 (NT) prohibits discrimination on the basis of gender identity (ss 19, 20) and imposes a duty to accommodate special needs (s 24). Incarcerating trans women in male facilities without appropriate accommodation or protection can amount to unlawful discrimination and a breach of that duty.

A trans person in custody has a special need to be housed safely in a setting that aligns with his/her/their gender identity. Failure to consider or reasonably accommodate that need would expose NT Corrections and by extension, the NT Government to potential legal liability.

The Commission reiterates that women’s safety in custody is a legitimate and vital concern, but it must be addressed through evidence-based correctional policy, not through fear or misinformation.

Overcrowding, inadequate health services, and under-resourcing - not transgender prisoners - remain the major systemic causes of violence and unsafe conditions in NT prisons.

Commissioner’s Statement

“Trans women are not a threat to women’s safety - they are among those most at risk of harm.

Public office holders have a duty to uphold evidence-based, lawful, and inclusive governance, not to inflame fear or division.”

The Commission urges the NT Government to consult with relevant organisations including NT Aids and Hepatitis Council, NT Department of Corrections and the NT Anti-Discrimination Commission before making any policy changes that affect transgender Territorians.

Background

• NT Correctional Services Directive 2.4.10 (Management of Trans, Gender Diverse or Intersex Prisoners, 2021) mandates individualised assessment and respectful treatment of trans and intersex prisoners.
• There are currently no recorded incidents of violence against female prisoners involving trans women in women’s correctional units in the NT.
• Similar claims cited relate to a South Australian case from 2019, not the NT.

Jeswynn Yogaratnam

NT Anti-Discrimination Commissioner