I believed Australia could not look away from Aboriginal deaths in custody. I was wrong

Indigenous people make up about 3.8% of Australia’s population but are more than one-third of the country’s prisoners. Photograph: David Gray/Getty Images

One of the first reporting jobs I was sent on as a young ABC Radio cadet was to a Walgett hearing of the royal commission into Aboriginal deaths in custody.

The commissioner, Hal Wootten QC, allowed me to fly with the commission staff in the small Cessna, and I have a vivid memory of him merrily handing around a basket of biscuits, our DIY in-flight service.