Donna Demaio: Australia Correspondent on the curfew being implemented in Alice Springs

Alice Springs is under another curfew. 

Australia’s Northern Territory Police Commissioner has declared another curfew, lasting three nights, following a string of violent incidents in the outback town. 

Australia Correspondent Donna Demaio told Ryan Bridge that this time the curfew applies to both children and adults, unlike the one in March that only applied to youth. 

She said that the NT Police Minister Brent Potter says it’s been a “horror 72 hours”, beginning with a police officer being run over outside a bottle shop on Friday night. 

LISTEN ABOVE 

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
The Northern Territory Police Commissioner. This is an Australia has
declared another curfew in Elie Springs. Our Australia correspondent is
Donna Demanishes with US Live this morning. Donna, what's the
latest here?

Speaker 2 (00:11):
Yes, well, Michael Murphy did declare this snap curfew from
ten pm to six am. This is for three days.
This is because there's been a string of violent incidents.
Now the curfew applies to adults and children this time around.
Do we know that in March there was a youth
curfew that lasted a couple of weeks. I do believe
if I remember correctly. Now the Northern Territory Police Minister

(00:33):
Brent Potter says it's been a horror seventy two hours
in the Red Center in the Northern Territory. For instance,
an alleged assault of four off duty police by about
twenty people. A police officer was run over allegedly over
outside sorry, outside a bottle shop. And we also heard
that a forty two year old woman was allegedly stabbed

(00:54):
a Sunday lunchtime. So we know now that these three days,
this three day curfew has been imposed. We've heard from
the Chief Minister also Eva Fowler, and she says she's
saying that organizations need to step up, do more, and
she's calling for more resources. So this doesn't keep happening
quite distressing?

Speaker 1 (01:14):
Yeah it is, and as you say, the incidents keep happening,
and so do the curfews. Let's go to Sydney. We're
a council. Well, what's going on with this artwork? Fecturing?
Am I right in saying Jesus and Looney Tunes?

Speaker 2 (01:28):
Oh, this is quite bizarre. But there's been quite an
amount of outrage over this work of art. So the
Sydney Local Council has said that what's taken off the
art gallery wall? But there was this very vitriolic and
highly critical online protest about this artwork. So what does
it depict? Well, they're saying that it mocks the Christian

(01:51):
religion and even the Liverpool Mayor said that he wanted
to take it down. Effectively, the art depicted Jesus Christ
carrying the cross. His face and others around him were
overlaid with Looney Tunes characters. I think Jesus was depicted
as goofy, so it was described by some as playful.
On the other hand, the online anger was intense and

(02:14):
the criticism was quite scathing. The artist says, look, he
does like to stir a bit of a reaction, but
the level of vitriol and sheer volume of online abuse
was frightening.

Speaker 1 (02:24):
He said.

Speaker 2 (02:25):
He called the threats a not at all Christian. But
after about nearly eight weeks then the artwork was taken
down over the weekend.

Speaker 1 (02:32):
Ah right, so it has been taken down Jesus. Maybe
Jesus didn't have a sense of humor. Thank you very
much for that. That is our Australia correspondent Donna Demo
with us this morning. It's just for more from News
Talks d B. Listen live on air or online and
keep our shows with you wherever you go with our
podcasts on IRT Radio