Some Items of Interest...

National Missing Persons Coordination Centre

The National Missing Persons Coordination Centre is funded by the Australian Government. Its mission is to coordinate and promote a national integrated approach to reduce the incidence and impact of missing persons.

It works in partnership with law enforcement, Commonwealth and state government agencies, tracing organisations and the community. A coordinated approach means that each agency's role is clearly articulated. This prevents duplication of effort and leads to effective referral, informed decision-making and better utilisation of resources for all agencies.

The National Missing Persons Coordination Centre:

  • recognises and protects the dignity, confidentiality and privacy of missing persons, victims and others involved;
  • asserts the importance to family and friends of locating missing persons and the significance of this as an issue for the community;
  • maintains its integrity by having an advisory committee of organisations and individuals who are working in the community interest on a non- profit basis;
  • responds equally in all cases without prejudice or discrimination;
  • works in consultation and partnerships with the Australian Police Services and the community to deliver the best possible service;
  • recognises and respects the ownership and confidentiality or information provided by the Australian Police jurisdictions and other agencies.

National committees

The National Missing Persons Coordination Centre convenes two national committees:

  • The  Police Consultative Group on Missing Persons (PCGMP) consists of police representatives from all missing persons units around Australia and works to standardise and improve police response to reported missing persons.
  • The National Advisory Committee on Missing Persons (NACMP) brings together representatives from police services and various non-government tracing services such as the Salvation Army, Australian Red Cross, International Social Service (Australia) and other missing persons services and groups. The NACMP is an advisory committee which aims to raise public awareness of, and provide advice to Government on missing persons issues. It also strives to relieve the tangible and intangible trauma felt by the families and friends of the missing.

Contact

The National Missing Persons Coordination Centre operates from 8am to 5pm Monday to Friday (excluding public holidays).

Missing Persons National Missing Persons Coordination Centre
PO Box 401
Canberra City ACT 2601		 Ph: 1800 000 634 (toll free)
Fax: 02 6246 2353
Email: Missing Persons Coordination Centre
Report a missing person sighting: online form

The above information is: © Commonwealth of Australia 2006

Information obtained from Australian Federal Police website 

 

The Australian Federal Police provides a confidential online Missing Person Sighting Form.  Please click here to access their form.

Research project designed to shed light on missing persons

A new research project has been commissioned to give police and policy workers a better understanding as to why people go missing in Australia.

The project is the initiative of the Australian Federal Police (AFP) and the New South Wales Attorney-General's Department and will be launched today in Canberra to mark National Missing Persons Week.

A counsellor at the NSW Family and Friends of Missing Persons Unit, Sarah Wayland, says the research will provide valuable information to tackle what is still a huge problem in Australia.

"At the moment the statistics suggest that there's about 30,000 people reported missing to police stations around Australia every single year," he said.

"In New South Wales, this year there is about 10,000 people that will be reported missing."

Ms Wayland says there has only been one other project of its kind in Australia

"The last research that was conducted was approximately eight years ago, so this new research will look into not only the phenomena of missing persons today, but what we can do for the future to provide some guidance to ensure that people perhaps don't continue to go missing," she said.

Source: ABC News Online: Monday, July 31, 2006.



Aboriginal community urged to contact police about missing people
 
NATIONAL, Aug 8, 2006: The Aboriginal community is being urged to report missing persons, amid increased concerns about the number of young Indigenous women who have gone missing.

NSW police and the Attorney-General's Department have launched a DVD aimed at encouraging people to come forward.

The initiative was jointly developed after 2002 research revealed 133 Aboriginal females were reported missing in NSW, the most significant group being girls aged 12 to 15 years.

NSW Police Commissioner Ken Moroney said the "Missing" DVD reassured people that police would do everything possible to help them locate their loved ones.

"This is a significant issue within the Aboriginal community and the key message of this DVD is that being a missing person is not a crime," Mr Moroney said in a statement.

"By working together police and families can ease the suffering of people in these situations."

Police were focusing in particular on Aboriginal females because they were over represented among general missing figures, he said.

This was compounded by the fact they were often going missing without their disappearance being reported.

Director of Victims Services John Le Breton said the DVD had a number of important messages.

"(It) highlights the importance of reporting a person missing as soon as possible and dispels the myth you have to wait 24 hours before notifying police," he said.

"Within the Aboriginal community, informal networks are often used initially to try and locate a person who has gone missing."

But this reduces the chances of police finding the missing person safe and well, he said.

The DVD, which was launched at Redfern, features Parramatta Eels player Dean Widders and MP Linda Burney.

It also contains stories of the distress experienced by families of missing persons and the support services available to them.

The DVD will be shown in high schools and at community forums in regional NSW.

The initiative coincided with National Missing Persons Week which finished recently.

Source - AAP
 

 


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