The supposed dimensions of the “crisis” in Alice Springs have been exhaustively portrayed in the media, both nationally and in the Northern Territory. The stories abound: shopfront windows repeatedly broken, groups of young children wandering the streets at night, and defenceless elderly residents struck down during violent robberies of their homes.
This week, the respected chief executive of “Congress”, the peak Aboriginal medical body in Central Australia, was on local ABC radio describing her fear when, while she was alone at home, two drunken men violently attempted to enter in search of alcohol.
The statistics bear out the perception: assaults, domestic violence, property damage and theft rose by more than 50% over the past year, the largest element of that increase in the past three or four months.
