WATCH: Ineffective BOOZE BAN rules are hard to swallow

Alice Springs' alcohol bans fail to curb problem drinking.

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Alcohol bans placed on bottle shops in Alice Springs were difficult to understand and do little to curtail problem drinking, according to locals I spoke with in the town.

After a national outcry regarding the crime wave affecting Australia’s red centre, the NT state government reintroduced the grog bans at the recommendation of Prime Minister Anthony Albanese.

But any illusions that the much-publicised bans would make alcohol difficult to obtain were quickly shattered when I visited Alice Springs and spoke to locals.

They explained that bottle shops were closed for two days each week, but remained open the rest of the week, albeit with some restricted trading hours.

A local indigenous man told me the bans, which had been heralded in capital cities as making a big difference to things on the ground, had done little to curb problem drinking.

“They’re got the ban on because Aboriginal people get drunk and fight and leave rubbish everywhere,” he said.

“They’re trying to minimise the alcohol consumption because, well when you look around town, white fellas drink in the clubs but Aboriginals drink everywhere and anywhere, and once they get drunk, that’s when the crime happens.”

He said the current system had made little difference to rates of drunkenness or to crime.

He said the only way the town’s crime problem would be remedied was if a total alcohol ban was enforced.

Mainstream media like the ABC are not willing to tell the truth about what is going on here in Alice Springs. To see all of our reports talking to locals on the ground at TheRealVoice.com.au and if you can, please donate to help cover our costs in bringing you the other side of the story.

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