Some stakeholders felt one factor in low Indigenous involvement in programs was a reluctance to participate in or accept interventions delivered by non-Indigenous staff. Many of the stakeholders and prisoners interviewed thought that correctional programs could be improved by incorporating elders and respected community members into the program curriculum. Some corrections staff stated they had observed higher participation rates, and lower drop-out rates, for programs delivered by Indigenous facilitators.
A greater availability of needs-based knowledge was also thought to be useful in assisting staff to manage their Indigenous offender case load. It was noted that staff dealing with Indigenous prisoners and ex-prisoners often had very little training in the area of Indigenous- specific needs and cultural sensitivity. As a result, some staff were thought to lack the knowledge and expertise to provide effective interventions to their Indigenous clientele. Prisoners felt that elders could provide cultural expertise to the program and emphasised the traditional role of elders in healing. Some prisoners suggested they were more likely to learn from elders than other facilitators, and that elders would provide a resource for positive change within the correctional environment. Elders were viewed as respected members of the Indigenous community who shared the same cultural background and possessed extensive knowledge of life. When discussing how anger management and family violence services in prison could be enhanced, one prisoner in Western Australia said:
Old people should get into it too…it’s the way it’s been done traditionally. Young people listen to the old people.
Prisoners also emphasised the importance of employing Indigenous facilitators in the programs, highlighting that they could relate more easily to other Indigenous people and shared a common understanding of the Indigenous experience. Some interviewees felt that Indigenous facilitators and elders would have a greater understanding of the roles and impacts of violence and substance use in the lives of Indigenous people.
Interviewees felt that the inclusion of Indigenous people within the treatment process could enhance the perceived legitimacy of the intervention and subsequently the offenders’ responsiveness to the content. A key respondent working with Indigenous prisoners in South Australia suggested:
Incorporate Indigenous facilitators – it will make guys open up more and they will be more willing to talk about their anger.
In relation to substance abuse programs, some interviewees suggested that Indigenous facilitators would have a clearer understanding of the role of substance abuse in the lives of other Indigenous people, and would possess more knowledge of substance abuse issues in
the community. In response to what he felt needed to be changed about alcohol and drug programs, one prisoner in Queensland suggested:
Bring in mentors and reformed old drunks. Use elders and respected people and provide the courses…[they can] act as role models and use [a] personal touch for programs.
Corrections staff and stakeholders in a number of areas commented on the unwillingness of many Indigenous males to participate in programs led by female facilitators, believing that their offending behaviour and issues around it were ‘men’s business’. Some stakeholders saw this as a major problem, noting the number of women involved in delivering correctional interventions.
Some prisoners felt that correctional programs could be enhanced by engaging facilitators who were better suited to program delivery. Aside from issues around their Indigenous status, some prisoners underscored the importance of employing facilitators who had similar life experiences to them or who had been in conflict with the law themselves. Others mentioned that more caring and compassionate facilitators were needed.
However, other interviewees noted that the involvement of elders and Indigenous facilitators was not a simple solution, highlighting problems similar to those discussed above in relation to culturally specific program adaptations. There are differences in viewpoints across Indigenous communities, and many have longstanding and entrenched feuds and disagreements with other communities, within or between family groups. There are many sensitivities around which individual elders or community representatives will be accepted by particular individuals or groups in prison. These sensitivities are unlikely to be understood properly by corrections agencies and it may not be possible to involve elders or facilitators who are acceptable to all prisoners. Stakeholders noted that there are also many individual prisoners who do not want to have contact with elders for various reasons.
Aside from difficulties of acceptance, it may be very difficult in practical terms to involve elders and engage Indigenous facilitators. Elders, particularly from remote communities, face social disadvantages and difficulties themselves and may not have the capacity or desire to visit prisons. Corrections agencies may not have the resources or capability to facilitate these visits. A number of stakeholders noted that it could be very difficult to recruit trained, qualified, appropriate and effective Indigenous facilitators, particularly in more remote parts of the jurisdiction.
One corrections staff member involved in program development and delivery talked about the potential value of involving elders in setting up groups in offenders’ home communities to provide support for offenders, as well as surveillance to assist in helping them stay away from risky or offending behaviours. At the same time though, this staff member talked about the huge logistical difficulties in bringing together the right people and establishing the mechanisms and arrangements to facilitate these groups.