DOAJ (DOAJ: Directory of Open Access Journals), Jul 1, 2017
For the most part, our understanding of the experience of imprisonment is mediated by official ac... more For the most part, our understanding of the experience of imprisonment is mediated by official accounts, or by researchers' interests that target predetermined aspects of the incarceration experience. Prison graffiti are a valuable source of archival data that enables insight into the experience of incarceration from the perspective of prisoners. The current project is an inductive thematic analysis of graffiti produced by individuals previously incarcerated at Boggo Road Gaol, in Brisbane, Australia. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander graffiti are discussed in relation to the conditions of imprisonment, and broader social and political issues in Queensland during the 1980s. 1 Resistance observed in the graffiti suggests that, despite their physical barrier to the outside world, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander prisoners remained active agents during their incarceration.
International policing is a complex and non-neutral endeavour, which encompasses a diverse range ... more International policing is a complex and non-neutral endeavour, which encompasses a diverse range of activities such as peace operations, capacity development, cross-border partnerships to combat transnational crime, and disaster assistance. In the Pacific region, while partnerships have long been part of the development and security landscapes, they entail various expectations and obligations, influenced by the historical relationships between countries and their relative status as aid donors or recipients. This chapter outlines the nature and development of international policing in the Pacific context. It then provides examples of international policing in the region, where many Pacific Islands countries have been involved both as host nations for-and contributors to-these efforts. The chapter highlights the complexities of partnerships in the Pacific region, and the challenges and benefits involved.
An understanding of policing dynamics requires an examination of not only the landscape of crimin... more An understanding of policing dynamics requires an examination of not only the landscape of criminal activities that police encounter and work in, but also the socio-political processes that produce crime in a given community and context. This chapter provides an overview of crime trends in Pacific Islands countries and territories (PICTs) in the twentyfirst century and discusses some key social dynamics producing various crimes. It pays special attention to crimes and violence experienced by young people and women, as well as how neoliberal globalisation has produced new vulnerabilities in PICTs, including expanding organised and transnational crime, such as drug trafficking and cybercrime. The chapter includes suggestions for where there are research and data gaps, and how future research and policy should aim to close these gaps to further inform crime-related policies. Keywords Crime in the pacific • Youth and crime • Gender-based violence • Trafficking • Environmental crime • Corruption • Violence
Plural policing has become a key focus in critical policing and security scholarship, with growin... more Plural policing has become a key focus in critical policing and security scholarship, with growing acknowledgement that policing practices involve multiple actors and diverse institutional forms. While much of the recent interest in plural policing has been prompted by the global growth of private security, plural policing in the Pacific Islands has long been evident in the coexistence of state-based police organisations operating nationally, and traditional or customary policing forms operating at local levels in most of these countries and territories. This chapter examines the plural character of Pacific policing in the context of historical and more recent processes of pluralisation, including the expanding domains of private and transnational policing, highlighting the deepening entanglement and interdependency between these various policing forms. The geographic focus is on the independent Melanesian countries, the region's most populous, socially diverse, and challenging policing environments.
Issues and challenges are not uncommon to policing organisations across the globe. For those in P... more Issues and challenges are not uncommon to policing organisations across the globe. For those in Pacific Islands countries and territories (PICTs), common issues such as functioning in a limited or resourceconstrained environment and adapting to continuously increasing stakeholder demands are further compounded by geographic context. The region presents unique policing spaces, which means that policing challenges characterised as normal or conventional must be dealt with alongside unconventional policing issues specific to PICTs with varied governance arrangements, strained resources, diverse cultures and traditions, reliance on external support, spaces that are policed by alternative means, and large and often fragmented jurisdictions. This chapter provides an overview of the challenges faced by police organisations in PICTs and shows that policing in these contexts is as much about improvisation as it is about discretion and professional practice. It establishes a context for later discussions about crime in PICTs; formal and informal policing roles across the region underscored by geography, tradition, culture, and religion; international policing agendas; and contemporary shifts in arguments about women in policing. Keywords Policing challenges and complexities • Organisational capacity • Colonial policing • Policing jurisdictions • Donor funding
Regulating behaviours commonly referred to as ‘vice’ is a challenge for liberal democratic and au... more Regulating behaviours commonly referred to as ‘vice’ is a challenge for liberal democratic and authoritarian governments alike. Behaviours falling into this category – like drug use, commercial sale and consumption of sex, the distribution of ‘pornographic’ (sexually explicit) images and gambling – evoke strong moral reactions and stir vigorous public debate about how they should be controlled. In recent years western states have shifted regulation of these types of behaviours away from the criminal law. In China, until recently, such behaviour has been addressed through a combination of criminal and administrative powers, including the controversial program of Re-education Through Labour (RETL). In 2013 RETL was abolished. This paper assesses how prostitution, pornography, gambling and drug use are now dealt with through a comparative analysis that contrasts the introduction of reforms designed regulate these behaviours in Australia with the practices that have been introduced in C...
Gender equality has increasingly been a focus for governments of Pacific Islands countries (PICs)... more Gender equality has increasingly been a focus for governments of Pacific Islands countries (PICs) and the international, regional, and local organisations working with them. As the most visible arm of governance, police organisations have attracted significant attention in terms of the gender agenda due to their role in responding to issues affecting women. This shift can be attributed to increased recognition of gender inequality in PICs and its association with high rates of crimes against women. This chapter discusses the changing place of women in highly gendered policing organisations internationally and in the Pacific. It considers influences on gender in Pacific policing associated with international, regional, and national frameworks, policies, and agendas aimed at improving women’s circumstances. The chapter then explores how regional instability and gender-based violence have shaped female officers’ participation in policing and provides examples of the impacts of their in...
The rapidly-accelerating integration of artificial intelligence into our lives will soon affect c... more The rapidly-accelerating integration of artificial intelligence into our lives will soon affect court rooms and other legal environments in Australia. This will occur so quickly and so soon that critical threshold issues for a smooth integration of AI into court environments remain unexamined. In particular, the psychological- and attitudinal-readiness of the judiciary to work with algorithmic tools is in question. Further, the literature is silent as to the degree to which judicial decision-makers are open or resistant to the fettering of their discretion by inscrutable AI systems. This distinct gap means that we do not yet know (1) whether Australian judges understand AI, (2) whether they trust it, (3) whether they appreciate its potentials and risks or what might influence their attitudes, (4) whether they are aware of the differences between automated and augmented decision making, and (5) what accountability and oversight mechanisms will be required. This paper considers the li...
This thesis conducts a multi-level policy transfer analysis of a governmental response to the pro... more This thesis conducts a multi-level policy transfer analysis of a governmental response to the problem of pseudoephedrine diversion. Pseudoephedrine is an active ingredient in over-the counter cold and flu medication available from pharmacists and also acts as a precursor chemical in the illicit production of Amphetamine-Type-Stimulants (ATS). ATS are synthetically produced psychotropic drugs that are subject to international and national controls on their production, supply and use. Throughout the late 1990s and mid 2000s there was a large increase in the rates of use and production of ATS in Australia. Between the years of 2001-2005, clandestine production of ATS was particularly pronounced in Queensland where the laboratory detections outnumbered all other states in Australia combined. Over 90% of clandestine laboratories detected in Australia relied upon the diversion of pseudoephedrine from legitimate pharmaceutical products. In 2006, in response to the increased diversion of ps...
DOAJ (DOAJ: Directory of Open Access Journals), Jul 1, 2017
For the most part, our understanding of the experience of imprisonment is mediated by official ac... more For the most part, our understanding of the experience of imprisonment is mediated by official accounts, or by researchers' interests that target predetermined aspects of the incarceration experience. Prison graffiti are a valuable source of archival data that enables insight into the experience of incarceration from the perspective of prisoners. The current project is an inductive thematic analysis of graffiti produced by individuals previously incarcerated at Boggo Road Gaol, in Brisbane, Australia. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander graffiti are discussed in relation to the conditions of imprisonment, and broader social and political issues in Queensland during the 1980s. 1 Resistance observed in the graffiti suggests that, despite their physical barrier to the outside world, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander prisoners remained active agents during their incarceration.
International policing is a complex and non-neutral endeavour, which encompasses a diverse range ... more International policing is a complex and non-neutral endeavour, which encompasses a diverse range of activities such as peace operations, capacity development, cross-border partnerships to combat transnational crime, and disaster assistance. In the Pacific region, while partnerships have long been part of the development and security landscapes, they entail various expectations and obligations, influenced by the historical relationships between countries and their relative status as aid donors or recipients. This chapter outlines the nature and development of international policing in the Pacific context. It then provides examples of international policing in the region, where many Pacific Islands countries have been involved both as host nations for-and contributors to-these efforts. The chapter highlights the complexities of partnerships in the Pacific region, and the challenges and benefits involved.
An understanding of policing dynamics requires an examination of not only the landscape of crimin... more An understanding of policing dynamics requires an examination of not only the landscape of criminal activities that police encounter and work in, but also the socio-political processes that produce crime in a given community and context. This chapter provides an overview of crime trends in Pacific Islands countries and territories (PICTs) in the twentyfirst century and discusses some key social dynamics producing various crimes. It pays special attention to crimes and violence experienced by young people and women, as well as how neoliberal globalisation has produced new vulnerabilities in PICTs, including expanding organised and transnational crime, such as drug trafficking and cybercrime. The chapter includes suggestions for where there are research and data gaps, and how future research and policy should aim to close these gaps to further inform crime-related policies. Keywords Crime in the pacific • Youth and crime • Gender-based violence • Trafficking • Environmental crime • Corruption • Violence
Plural policing has become a key focus in critical policing and security scholarship, with growin... more Plural policing has become a key focus in critical policing and security scholarship, with growing acknowledgement that policing practices involve multiple actors and diverse institutional forms. While much of the recent interest in plural policing has been prompted by the global growth of private security, plural policing in the Pacific Islands has long been evident in the coexistence of state-based police organisations operating nationally, and traditional or customary policing forms operating at local levels in most of these countries and territories. This chapter examines the plural character of Pacific policing in the context of historical and more recent processes of pluralisation, including the expanding domains of private and transnational policing, highlighting the deepening entanglement and interdependency between these various policing forms. The geographic focus is on the independent Melanesian countries, the region's most populous, socially diverse, and challenging policing environments.
Issues and challenges are not uncommon to policing organisations across the globe. For those in P... more Issues and challenges are not uncommon to policing organisations across the globe. For those in Pacific Islands countries and territories (PICTs), common issues such as functioning in a limited or resourceconstrained environment and adapting to continuously increasing stakeholder demands are further compounded by geographic context. The region presents unique policing spaces, which means that policing challenges characterised as normal or conventional must be dealt with alongside unconventional policing issues specific to PICTs with varied governance arrangements, strained resources, diverse cultures and traditions, reliance on external support, spaces that are policed by alternative means, and large and often fragmented jurisdictions. This chapter provides an overview of the challenges faced by police organisations in PICTs and shows that policing in these contexts is as much about improvisation as it is about discretion and professional practice. It establishes a context for later discussions about crime in PICTs; formal and informal policing roles across the region underscored by geography, tradition, culture, and religion; international policing agendas; and contemporary shifts in arguments about women in policing. Keywords Policing challenges and complexities • Organisational capacity • Colonial policing • Policing jurisdictions • Donor funding
Regulating behaviours commonly referred to as ‘vice’ is a challenge for liberal democratic and au... more Regulating behaviours commonly referred to as ‘vice’ is a challenge for liberal democratic and authoritarian governments alike. Behaviours falling into this category – like drug use, commercial sale and consumption of sex, the distribution of ‘pornographic’ (sexually explicit) images and gambling – evoke strong moral reactions and stir vigorous public debate about how they should be controlled. In recent years western states have shifted regulation of these types of behaviours away from the criminal law. In China, until recently, such behaviour has been addressed through a combination of criminal and administrative powers, including the controversial program of Re-education Through Labour (RETL). In 2013 RETL was abolished. This paper assesses how prostitution, pornography, gambling and drug use are now dealt with through a comparative analysis that contrasts the introduction of reforms designed regulate these behaviours in Australia with the practices that have been introduced in C...
Gender equality has increasingly been a focus for governments of Pacific Islands countries (PICs)... more Gender equality has increasingly been a focus for governments of Pacific Islands countries (PICs) and the international, regional, and local organisations working with them. As the most visible arm of governance, police organisations have attracted significant attention in terms of the gender agenda due to their role in responding to issues affecting women. This shift can be attributed to increased recognition of gender inequality in PICs and its association with high rates of crimes against women. This chapter discusses the changing place of women in highly gendered policing organisations internationally and in the Pacific. It considers influences on gender in Pacific policing associated with international, regional, and national frameworks, policies, and agendas aimed at improving women’s circumstances. The chapter then explores how regional instability and gender-based violence have shaped female officers’ participation in policing and provides examples of the impacts of their in...
The rapidly-accelerating integration of artificial intelligence into our lives will soon affect c... more The rapidly-accelerating integration of artificial intelligence into our lives will soon affect court rooms and other legal environments in Australia. This will occur so quickly and so soon that critical threshold issues for a smooth integration of AI into court environments remain unexamined. In particular, the psychological- and attitudinal-readiness of the judiciary to work with algorithmic tools is in question. Further, the literature is silent as to the degree to which judicial decision-makers are open or resistant to the fettering of their discretion by inscrutable AI systems. This distinct gap means that we do not yet know (1) whether Australian judges understand AI, (2) whether they trust it, (3) whether they appreciate its potentials and risks or what might influence their attitudes, (4) whether they are aware of the differences between automated and augmented decision making, and (5) what accountability and oversight mechanisms will be required. This paper considers the li...
This thesis conducts a multi-level policy transfer analysis of a governmental response to the pro... more This thesis conducts a multi-level policy transfer analysis of a governmental response to the problem of pseudoephedrine diversion. Pseudoephedrine is an active ingredient in over-the counter cold and flu medication available from pharmacists and also acts as a precursor chemical in the illicit production of Amphetamine-Type-Stimulants (ATS). ATS are synthetically produced psychotropic drugs that are subject to international and national controls on their production, supply and use. Throughout the late 1990s and mid 2000s there was a large increase in the rates of use and production of ATS in Australia. Between the years of 2001-2005, clandestine production of ATS was particularly pronounced in Queensland where the laboratory detections outnumbered all other states in Australia combined. Over 90% of clandestine laboratories detected in Australia relied upon the diversion of pseudoephedrine from legitimate pharmaceutical products. In 2006, in response to the increased diversion of ps...
Uploads
Papers by Melissa Bull