Australian Human Rights Commission Submission to the UN Human Rights Committee, 18 September 2017 disability14 and children.15 Rates of imprisonment of Indigenous women have risen substantially in the past decade. 26. The issue of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander deaths in police custody and in prison has been cause for alarm for several decades. Nationally in 2014– 15, there were 11 deaths in police custody, of which five were Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander deaths.16 27. Laws and policies disproportionately affecting Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people have contributed to these incarceration rates. In particular, the Commission notes:  ‘Paperless arrest’ laws in the Northern Territory provide police with the power to detain a person for up to four hours (or longer if the person is intoxicated) if they suspect the person has committed or is about to commit an ‘infringement notice offence’ (a minor offence).17  Bail laws and policies have become more restrictive in Australia and have led to a significant increase in the number of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people held on remand.18  The Special Rapporteur on the rights of Indigenous peoples has said that mandatory sentencing laws need to be reviewed.19  The Commission has previously reported on several cases where indigenous people are in prolonged detention due to being considered ‘unfit to plead’ resulting in them being detained for a period longer than the maximum sentence if they had been tried and found guilty. 20  Imprisonment from fine default — often caused by small overdue fines for criminal offences that, on their own, do not carry an imprisonment penalty — is contributing to high incarceration rates.21 28. The Commission notes that the current inquiry by the ALRC into the incarceration of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples will assist in identifying laws requiring amendment to reduce Indigenous incarceration.22 29. The Commission has advocated that justice targets be set to halve the gap in rates of incarceration for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, as compared with non-Indigenous people.23 The Senate Legal and Constitutional Affairs Committee and successive Social Justice Commissioners have recommended justice reinvestment strategies.24 30. Noting that a federal approach is needed to address imprisonment rates and the experience of violence of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, the Commission welcomes the Change the Record Coalition’s Blueprint for change.25 31. The Special Rapporteur on the rights of indigenous peoples has recommended that efforts be made to recruit Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander prison staff and that police and prison staff be trained in cultural sensitivity.26 9