Letter: Aboriginal justice

Sir: It was with considerable interest that I read the account by Phil Reeves of the Alaskan Tlingit tribal court and the possibility of banishment of two young offenders ('With the court cleansed of evil spirits, youths face their tribe', 3 September).

While in the Kimberley district of far north-western Western Australia in May, our pilot took the Cessna down to 300m to overfly the islands of the Buccaneer Archipelago, 150km south of the Prince Regent river. On one small island, two aboriginal youths were in six months' exile with only a small canvas tent, ample water and fishing tackle. Their offence was not disclosed.

As one of the elders of another tribe told me a few weeks ago, tribal courts are a great deal tougher than those of the white man. The Nulla Nulla, for example, is a sturdy stick two metres long and thicker than a cane which is still administered from heel to buttock. For serious transgression, the single or double barbed spear is passed through the offender's thigh and proves an inducement to good order and discipline.

Yours faithfully,

J. E. deB NORMAN

Stratford, New South Wales

Australia

4 September