This project is to provide local Pacific Islander Awareness training to police staff located in the LAC and to Pacific Islander community members of the Group in police practices and procedures, particularly in custody issues.Provide an effective & appropriate service to meet the needs of Pacific Islander victims of crime, and appropriate support and advice to Pacific Islander persons arrested or detained.

Provide a support role to the Ethnic Community Liaison Officer and the local police officers and increase representation of Pacific Islander Support members on the Support Group.

The proposal is to run a series of day trips and occasional overnight camping trips to various areas of interest in the Top End Area within 300km of Darwin. The targeted group are the youth from newly arrived migrant/refugee families. These are mainly African, Middle Eastern people.

It is proposed that on the overnight trips leadership/team building activities will take place with qualified instructors.

Zillmere is a culturally diverse community and the Zillmere PCYC is building partnerships with local services to assist young people at risk in the area. The aim of this project is to provide 100 disadvantaged young people in the Zillmere area, a chance to participate in PCYC programs in 2004 without having to pay membership or activity fees. The program will also be linked to a youth leadership program that will be an effective crime prevention activity that will assist disadvantaged young people to play positive and responsible roles within their communities.

The Zillmere PCYC hopes to be able to offer young people the opportunity to be in a Police-Citizens Youth Club to enhance police/community relations and to develop a whole range of social and interpersonal skills and values.

The proposed operation is loosely based on an existing project "Currawong" which is an early intervention, inter-agency program for young offenders or young people deemed 'at risk'. The project involves young people undertaking a wilderness therapy course in company with significant adults in a 'wilderness' environment.

Currawong was piloted in 2002 and involved Tasmania Police, Youth Justice, Ashley Detention Centre and Project Hahn. The evaluation showed downward trends in levels of offending, positive attitudinal changes in participants and reduction in aggressive behaviour toward authority figures.

The project is to provide targeted regional cross-cultural training for 4 consecutive days for approximately 25 operational police officers in rural Shepparton and the surrounding area to better understand Arabic culture and their related settlement issues, including the teaching of practical phrases and sentences in the Arabic language.

The project is to determine appropriate training model which could be replicated in other rural areas of Victoria.

To build positive relationships between the nominated service providers and refugee participants by running two camps separated into age groups. Attendees will be encouraged to participate in various team building exercises and information sessions that will enable them to be better prepared and educated to use services within their communities.

The overall aim is to divert recently arrived refugee youth from forming gangs and participating in antisocial behaviour and illegal activities.

To identify cultural minorities including indigenous in the community and invite them to attend a 4 week (1 evening per week) program, covering sessions on:

• Sharing experiences regarding barriers, misunderstandings, challenges etc when relocating to Australia - guest speaker will start this session from personal experience.
• Protective behaviours session.
• Domestic violence (invite crisis care).
• Services available locally (agency representatives) including Police Role in Australia.

Each session will finish with a social aspect so an informal network can be formed by having an evening meal (different cultural cuisine).