Tribal Punishment: Some Sense at Last

Some tribal groups claim the right exact punishment outside Australia's justice system. Agamedes draws the line at "punishment".

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Today's West reports that some young Aboriginal girls may have received "tribal punishment" for their involvement in a car crash near Pt Hedland (Crash girls 'get tribal punishment', 10 Apr 2010). According to an Aboriginal leader "who cannot be named", "media coverage ... had most likely helped prevent a more brutal punishment." Police have also been involved, trying to keep a lid on possible retaliation.

So what's the story?

Five teenage girls (13, 14 years old) drove a stolen car at high speed. The car crashed. One girl was killed in the crash. Tribes-people claimed that the surviving girls needed to be beaten or speared, as punishment.

Isn't it funny: It's always the people carrying the biggest sticks and spears who believe that beating and spearing is an essential part of retaliation and retribution... Anyway...

As with any criminal case involving a stolen car, high speed, a crash and death, the Australian legal system will be involved. Any person who drives a stolen car at high speed, then crashes the car causing death, can expect to be dealt with by the criminal justice system. For some people, apparently, this is not enough.

We are different! they cry. We are black, or muslim, or members of a cult, or peaceful protesters, or whatever... and we demand the right to operate outside Australian law!

Now for the Good News

According to today's report, the "punishment" did take place. Some of the girls -- the surviving girls -- "were hit with a traditional Aboriginal stick". They were hit with a stick, but "none required medical treatment."

I'll take the optimistic view: the hitting was a token. It was not intended to hurt, just to be remembered. So what -- in my optimistic hope -- has really happened?

The girls were taken to a quiet location. Away from the police, journalists, other stickybeaks. The girls were confronted by relatives of the dead girl. They were made to face the reality of sadness caused by an avoidable death in the family. Then they were given a token "punishment" by the grieving relatives... Not enough to hurt, just a physical reminder of the grief that they had (allegedly!) caused.

Is that actually what happened? Did the girls face up to the results of their careless actions? Did the relatives of the dead girl express their grief -- and disappointment -- through a ritualised confrontation followed by token physical punishment? Is the matter, the death, now put safely behind them, so that all involved can get on with their lives? Is it a case of face up to it, forgive it, do not forget it? I hope so.

Tribal punishment is for primitive people. People who understand nothing beyond revenge via physical punishment. You hit me and my entire tribe will enact brutal and physical revenge. And the revenge is as much against our laws as is the original crime.

I'm an optimist. I see potential good in confrontation, understanding, forgiveness. If that is really what happened -- well done!

If the process really works -- it could be integrated with our accepted, universal, Australian system of justice. We have crime, we have punishment. We attempt rehabilitation. Perhaps we should add acceptance of "the error of our ways" to the start of the attempt at rehabilitation.

Forgive, or not. Understand. But do not forget.

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Footnote:

I had a phone call from one of my regular readers. He may be my only regular reader:-) Anyway, he has trouble with internet technology so he phoned me, to comment on this article. This reader added two -- important -- points:

• Under current laws, "tribal punishment" is not a part of our legal system. So the report that some of the girls have already been "punished" does not mean that they have already received any legally acceptable punishment for any alleged crime. They are still subject to trial and sentencing by a court.
  
• The "tribal punishment" -- if it occurred at all -- was probably only related to the death of one of the girls, when the (allegedly) stolen car (allegedly) crashed. There have been no reports of tribal punishment being even considered for car theft, speeding, any other (allegedly) criminal activities.
  

In other words, if the tribal punishment did actually occur, it was illegal, irrelevant and incomplete.

Thank you for getting in touch! I hope that I have correctly reported on your comments.