Commissioner Alastair McEwin Shares his Optimism for the Royal Commission into Violence, Abuse, Neglect, and Exploitation of People with Disabilities
Established in April of 2019, the Royal Commission into Violence, Abuse, Neglect, and Exploitation of People with Disabilities carries the hopes of many that it will lead to recommendations that will overhaul the current status of the disability community in Australia.
Appointed by the Australian Prime Minister, the Disability Royal Commission is led by the long-term disability advocate Alastair McEwin, who is also profoundly deaf. The appointment comes with both anticipation and trepidation for McEwin, who believes his own status as a member of the disability community gives a needed perspective within the commission but also acknowledges the stories he hears are often harrowing tales of abuse that strike close to home.
Sitting down with podcast show host Ming Michelle Canaday, McEwin gives an overview of his position and his optimism in what the commission can successfully accomplish in the years to come.
What is a Royal Commission?
In Australia, royal commissions are created to investigate matters of great importance while being independent of the government. Each commission is given the power to hold public hearings, call witnesses, and compile evidence.
In the case of the Disability Royal Commission, the main tools used will be hearings and witness statements to compile a narrative of abuse dating back decades. This narrative will then be used to make recommendations to the Australian government about which changes should be made to enact positive consequences across the country.
McEwin and others are particularly optimistic about this commission because it gives the commission the right to search through thousands of documents that haven’t previously been looked over. McEwin hopes these documents will provide important evidence that will influence the government to make long-lasting, impactful change.
What are the Goals of the Disability Royal Commission?
McEwin was candid in sharing his goals for the commission with us, saying that what he hopes to accomplish is a completely overhauled system for the disability community in Australia. For too long, abuse towards people with disabilities has been rampant in Australian society -- from schools to jails to long-term care facilities.
What are the specifics of a new system?
McEwin points to prevention, accountability, and inclusion.
The commission hopes to prevent the abuse that has taken place for so many years by achieving a better system of accountability with a robust reporting and investigation procedure. McEwin hopes that the prevention of abuse through accountability will have wider effects through society, ushering in a new era of inclusion that better supports people with disabilities to have independent and fulfilling lives.
The system in Australia is broken. For too many years, abuse has been tolerated within the disability community without any accountability.
For McEwin, a disability advocate and a member of the disability community himself, that is unacceptable. With the power of a royal commission, his hope is that disability abuse will be thrust into the spotlight and government action will follow soon after. His larger goal is that for the future generations, no person with a disability will have to endure abuse.
Want to hear Alastair McEwin in his own words? Check out the Traipsin’ Global on Wheels Podcast Hour at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jm6h1S3_9P8&t=372s
Want to know more about the Disability Royal Commission? Check out https://disability.royalcommission.gov.au/about-royal-commission
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