Equal or unequal opportunities within the criminal justice system from a rural and regional perspective

Approximately a third of NSW criminal charges are dealt with in rural and regional courts. About a third of prisoners in NSW goals come from rural and regional NSW. However, resources – legal and therapeutic – available for rural and regional defendants do not match those available for offenders located in metropolitan areas. Twenty-one significant disparities are identified. Three sources of these disparities are also identified – court proceedings, geographical remoteness, and government failures. The majority of identified disparities, it is argued, is attributable to government failure. Recent changes to sentencing law and practices in the administration of sentences are looked at from a rural perspective and potential new and continuing disparities are identified. The limitations arising from the disparities to the exercise of judicial discretion with a rural setting are explained particularly with reference to sentencing.

A comparison of rural crimes in Australia (NSW) and South Africa

Rural criminology as a topic of scholarly study, neglected over the past two to three decades, has bounced into the spotlight, with claims now being made that rural criminology is receiving justified attention among the academic fraternity. This paper presents a comparative analysis of the major challenge facing two countries with different levels of development as identified by the United Nations Human Development Index. A predicament for rural criminology is that the world is not equal: rural crimes is researched in developed countries but not in developing countries. This paper compares the types and prevalence of agricultural crimes in Australia (NSW) and South Africa to determine whether significant differences or similarities exist.

NSW Police Force and rural crime

Rural crime has a financial, emotional and physical impact on its victims, their family and the community. Often the victims are isolated, their livestock and equipment are extremely valuable and their rural properties are a family business handed down from generation to generation, with the families working hard and making large sacrifices to keep their business profitable and able to supply the greater community with quality produce. The direction of the NSW Police Force towards rural crime has evolved over the past 70 years. The renewed focus and creation of the Rural Crime Prevention Team is a significant enhancement on our ability to target rural crime within NSW. This article discusses the history of the NSW Police Force involvement in rural crime and, particularly, the approaches taken by the Rural Crime Prevention Team since December 2017

The emergence of ungoverned space in the British countryside

Police and farmers in Britain have differing views on the effectiveness and measures of effectiveness of the policing of rural and farm crime. Farmers are increasingly feeling abandoned by the police while the police are trying to resource rural policing against a backdrop of budget cuts, inadequate strategic guidance and a lack of understanding of the impact of rural and farm crime. To obtain information on issues about farm crime, interviews were conducted with Police and Crime Commissioners and Crime Prevention Advisors across four rural police forces in England. Interviews and focus groups were also conducted with farmers. The research found that farmers have low levels of confidence in the police, which resulted from the police providing poor response and feedback on incidents. This in turn results in low levels of reporting of crimes by farmers. The police are dealing with increased demands with much lower budgets and few opportunities for specialist training. Combined with ineffective strategic responses and a lack of understanding of farmers’ situations regarding the impact of farm crime, the police are perceived as ineffective in deterring rural criminals. This paper explores these policing issues and suggests the need to improve confidence among farming communities to encourage the reporting of farm crime, enabling a better understanding of the extent of farm crime in Britain.

Rural-urban dynamics in the UK illegal puppy trade: Trafficking and trade in 'man's best friend'

Recently, much attention has been given to the presence and increase of transnational crime, particularly focusing on online illicit markets. A seldom-explored aspect of transnational online illicit markets is the rural to urban flow of the illicit goods. This paper details research on the UK puppy trade, documenting the movement of puppies reared in irresponsible and/or illegal conditions in rural locations and then advertised online for the urban market. Through analysis of online advertisements in Scotland and expert interviews, a stakeholder survey, and focus groups across Great Britain, we document the rural-urban dynamic of an overlooked transnational illicit market, a market facilitated by neo-liberalism and speciesism. While estimates on the value of the trade are problematic, the snapshot of online sales in Scotland alone suggests a marketplace with an annual value of at least £13 million (17,680 puppies). The cost of animal suffering associated with this trade is incalculable. Awareness must be raised and regulatory enforcement improved to reduce suffering and stop transnational criminals from profiting. This rural-urban dynamic presents a global challenge and demands an international response.

Rural crime and law

This paper discusses the nature and extent of rural crime and suggested solutions to rural crime; providing the author’s opinion on mandatory sentencing, increased penalties, certainty of detection, and reduction of the profit motive. Particularly, the article discusses the issues of stock theft, abalone poaching, firearms offences, traffic offences, logging protest cases, pastures protection – legal principles, proposed solutions, practical issues. The article also touches on changes in law enforcement, technology and the administration of justice, as well as police interviews with suspects, DNA, video surveillance, domestic violence issues and women in courts. The paper concludes with a description of the experiences of a magistrate who lived and worked in rural NSW, discussing issues that arise as a result of inevitable relationships with accused and others in the town.

Seventy Years of changes in China’s rural land system: Review, enlightenment and outlook

The paper introduces five stages of reforms to China’s rural land system since the establishment of the People’s Republic of China. From the process of China’s rural land policy and legislation, some conclusion may be drawn: reforms of the rural land usage system should be appropriate to its economic base and the will of the peasants should be respected. The paper indicates: in the near future, the peasant collective ownership of land will not change; foreseeably, land use pattern in China will be diverse; at the same time, China will focus more on sustainable and ecological use of land; The land rights and interests of the farmers and peasant collectives will be safeguarded better.

Local Voices on forced mergers in small rural Australian communities:The case of the Guyra Shire Council

When an Australian state or territory government launches a program of forced municipal mergers, it typically attracts much less attention in metropolitan areas compared with regional, rural and remote locations where the local council is often “government of last resort”. In these latter areas the socio-economic effects of compulsory council consolidation can be severe. This paper explores the perceived impact of the forced amalgamation of Guyra Shire Council with the much larger neighbouring Armidale Dumaresq Council under the recent New South Wales (NSW) Government’s Fit for the Future structural reform program by anticipated by Guyra residents who participated in a focus group.

What’s behind the ag-data logo? An examination of voluntary agricultural-data codes of practice

In this article, we analyse agricultural data (ag-data) codes of practice. After the introduction, Part II examines the emergence of ag-data codes of practice and provides two case studies—the American Farm Bureau’s Privacy and Security Principles for Farm Data and New Zealand’s Farm Data Code of Practice—that illustrate that the ultimate aims of ag-data codes of practice are inextricably linked to consent, disclosure, transparency and, ultimately, the building of trust. Part III highlights the commonalities and challenges of ag-data codes of practice. In Part IV several concluding observations are made. Most notably, while ag-data codes of practice may help change practices and convert complex details about ag-data contracts into something tangible, understandable and useable, it is important for agricultural industries to not hastily or uncritically accept or adopt ag-data codes of practice. There needs to be clear objectives, and a clear direction in which stakeholders want to take ag-data practices. In other words, stakeholders need to be sure about what they are trying, and able, to achieve with ag-data codes of practice. Ag-data codes of practice need credible administration, accreditation and monitoring. There also needs to be a way of reviewing and evaluating the codes in a more meaningful way than simple metrics such as the number of members: for example, we need to know something about whether the codes raise awareness and education around data practices, and, perhaps most importantly, whether they encourage changes in attitudes and behaviours around the access to and use of ag-data.

From Smokebush to Spinifex: Indigenous traditional knowledge and the commercialisation of plants

Indigenous Australians, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders, have diverse relationships with plants and their seeds. This cultural knowledge has been passed on through the generations, creating a deep history that has produced sophisticated fields of knowledge intimately linked to both diverse cultural geographies and the natural environment across the country. Western scientific, government and private sector commercial institutions have been collecting Australian plant material for over 200 years. Sometimes, such ‘collectors’ obtain the Indigenous knowledge simultaneously with the plant material. On occasions, the culturally-based Indigenous ownership of that knowledge is acknowledged by collectors. However in the majority of instances that has not been the case. Furthermore, different western institutions take different approaches to the collection, management and use of Australian plant material and associated Indigenous plant knowledge. A particular challenge in this arena is the lack of any shared understanding of Indigenous knowledge and intellectual property issues that are involved, and how those might best be addressed. But there is a gathering momentum, from diverse quarters, to face such challenges. This paper aims to contribute to consideration of the issues involved in order to promote more robust inclusion of Indigenous rights, interests and concerns.