African, Middle Eastern and Indigenous community leaders are calling for the Andrews government and Victoria police to review Covid fines after a report revealed ethnic minorities and First Nations people were more likely to receive infringements for breaching lockdown rules.
Released on Tuesday, the report revealed people of African and Middle Eastern appearance were four times more likely to receive fines for breaching the state’s lockdown rules in 2020, accounting for share of the population. Victoria police have rejected the allegation by the report’s lead researcher that officers targeted certain racial groups.
Dr Berhan Ahmed, the chief executive of youth and community services organisation Africause, said the report was clear evidence of police targeting people based on their ethnicity.
“The numbers speak for themselves. [Police] were targeting and this got out of control in lockdowns,” he said.
Ahmed called for the Victorian government to scrap all Covid fines due to the report’s evidence. “These people need to be given a fair go,” he said.
Last year, the New South Wales government was forced to withdraw about 33,000 Covid fines totalling more than $30m after conceding they were too vague. It followed test cases in the supreme court lodged by Redfern Legal Centre that raised serious concerns about their lawfulness.
Victoria police said anyone who receives a penalty notice could request a review by Fines Victoria, but wider action on fines would be a matter for the state government.
The report, released by the Inner Melbourne Community Legal centre, found Indigenous people – who make up 1% of Victoria’s population – accounted for 30% of Covid fines in some regional parts of the state like Mildura. Overall, First Nations people accounted for nearly 3% of all fines.
Nerita Waight, the chief executive of the Victorian Aboriginal Legal Service, said it was “disappointing” Victoria police was not willing to “even consider if fines were issued in a discriminatory fashion given the data is so stark”.
“I don’t think that Victoria police can credibly argue that there was no bias in any of the decisions made to issue over 50,000 Covid fines. That is not believable,” she said. Waight said the state’s Covid fines should be scrapped.
During the state’s Indigenous truth-telling commission hearings last month, the chief commissioner of Victoria police apologised for past and present actions of the force that inflicted trauma on First Nations people. He also acknowledged that systemic racism and discriminatory action in the force had gone “undetected, unchecked and unpunished”.
More than 20% of Covid fines were issued to people of African and Middle Eastern appearance, despite them only making up about 5% of the Victorian population. The lead researcher on the report, Dr Tamar Hopkins, called for a police monitoring scheme, similar to models used in England and parts of the US, along with an independent complaints body to hold officers accountable.
Adel Salman, the president of the Islamic Council of Victoria, said he did not believe that people of Middle Eastern and African appearance were disproportionately breaching Covid rules. He said Victoria police should reassess fines on a case-by-case basis.
“I don’t expect police would waive all of them as I am sure some are legitimate. But it comes back to the enforcement and it must be done consistently.”
The state’s attorney general, Jaclyn Symes, told a recent public accounts and estimates committee budget estimates hearing that only one in 10 Covid fines had been paid in full. She said 50,150 Covid-19 fines had been issued, totalling more than $100m.
A spokesperson for Victoria police rejected the allegation that officers targeted specific ethnic groups for breaching Covid rules. The spokesperson said officers enforced the directions by the state’s chief health officer during Covid.
“Police were deployed throughout the state and officers were routinely reminded to take a consistent approach,” the spokesperson said. “Police were able to apply discretion, however, fines were issued for deliberate, blatant and obvious offences.”
A Victorian government spokesperson said the waiving of fines was a matter for police and anyone who received a fine could request an enforcement review.
Guardian Australia understands the Victorian government has no plans for a widespread waiving of Covid fines.
Australian Associated Press contributed to this report.
