The New South Wales Assistant Police Commissioner has suggested a video showing a police officer kicking over an Indigenous teenager and pinning him to the ground isn’t what it looks like.
Assistant Commissioner Mick Willing says he is concerned about the actions of the police officer, but is equally concerned about people using the video to turn it into something it isn’t.
The 17-year old’s family say the arrest was “dangerous and uncalled for” and have called for the officer to be charged.
The incident comes amid a backdrop of increasing anger, both in the US and in many countries around the world, over the continued over-policing and unequal justice faced by black Americans and Indigenous people.
A member of the Prime Minister’s Advisory Council, Roy Ah See has labeled comments as hogwash and says that our mob have been treated like this for a long time.
The incident is under an internal investigation and the officer has been put on restrictive duties during the inquiry.
CEO of the Public Interest Advocacy Centre, Jonathon Hunyor says the public will be concerned that the police are investigating themselves.
Federal Minister for Indigenous Australians Ken Wyatt has told the ABC that it provides further reason to address Australia’s Indigenous incarceration rates.
