About 200 people gathered outside Victorian parliament on March 18, 2025 to protest tougher bail laws that the major parties are preparing to rush through. Video via AAP.
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00:00The Premier has said that these laws are about reducing re-offending and making the community safe.
00:06But for how many decades have governments had reports and evidence on their desks about ways to do this that don't resort to police and prisons?
00:15It's offensive at this point that governments continue to ignore what works and continue to invest in police and prisons instead of our communities.
00:23This afternoon the government introduced into Parliament what they're claiming to be the toughest bail laws in the country.
00:30Imagine being proud of that.
00:32They're calling these laws the Tough Bail Bill.
00:35And the Premier has already told Parliament and the media that they expect a huge number of adults and children who are incarcerated on remand.
00:43This is something they're boasting about.
00:45Justice! What a joke.
00:48It failed us then and it failed us now.
00:51Haven't we been here before?
00:54In 2018, 65% of women were locked up for less than a month and released without a sentence.
01:02I am one of those women.
01:05I am feeling immense pressure to stand before you all today.
01:10Important to highlight are the massive rates of women being misidentified and other family violence related charges that women plead guilty for to get back to their children.