Aborigines make up 29% of Oz’s prisoners, yet only 3% of its population ‘Political will and strong leadership seem to be missing in enacting 30-year-old report into jailed indigenous people’ By Melanie Burton - 17 April 2021 Protesters rally to mark a national day of action, protesting against aboriginal deaths in police custody, in Sydney, Australia. Image: REUTERS/ JAIMI JOY Aboriginal deaths in custody in Australia and high incarceration rates came under a harsh spotlight from indigenous groups and policymakers on Thursday as they marked the 30th anniversary of a report on an issue that has become a source of national shame. Aboriginal people make up about 3% of Australia’s population, but about 29% of its prison population, up from 14% when the Royal Commission report came out in 1991.