A Northern Territory senator has warned against the need for a defence force intervention in the region as a response to the crime crisis in Alice Springs.
Malarndirri McCarthy said while the need for the Australian Defence Force to intervene in Alice Springs had been suggested as a solution, there was still trauma in communities from when federal intervention occurred in 2007.
Crime rates in Alice Springs have led to a three-month ban on the sale of takeaway alcohol on Mondays and Tuesdays, with trading hours reduced on other days and purchasing limits put in place.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese flew to Alice Springs last week to meet with community leaders and NT chief minister Natasha Fyles on the issue.
Senator McCarthy told Sky News on Sunday that while a solution needed to be found quickly, ADF interventions were not the way to do it.
"In 2007 when that did occur with the army coming in and soldiers coming in, there was a great level of panic and heightened concern," she said.
"There is a leftover trauma from that experience for a lot of families, and I would caution against wanting to call the ADF in."
Senator McCarthy said she was hopeful there would be a positive change in Alice Springs, following the national spotlight on crime issues in the area.
Regional controller Dorelle Anderson is expected to provide a progress report to the prime minister and Ms Fyles later this week on the new measures implemented.
Senator McCarthy said the report would be important.
"The federal government has urged the NT government to ensure that there is the opportunity to opt out (of alcohol bans) for communities," she said.
"(The NT government) has the power here in the Northern Territory through the Legislative Assembly to do that, and so this week is going to be a crucial moment."
Nationals leader David Littleproud told Sky News the decision by Mr Albanese to travel to Alice Springs to meet with people on the ground about the issue was the right thing to do.
He said alcohol restrictions should not have been relaxed, only to be reintroduced.
"They should never been let go. They were warned on June 9 by community groups in Alice Springs to the minister saying 'do not remove when the community's not ready'," he said.
"At some stage the government's responsibility always falls back to one simple principle: to keep its people safe. And that means you have to govern for the greater good rather than an individual."
