Tekan Cochrane on First Nations justice ^{CEFR B2}

Tekan Cochrane is an Australian Indigenous lawyer of Kooma, Yuwaalaraay and Torres Strait Islander heritage. She was raised on a farm in central Queensland and was the first in her family to attend university. Her work is driven by lived experience, community accountability and a focus on systemic reform.

In 2025 she was a finalist for the Australian Human Rights Commission’s Law Award. Tekan is Executive Officer of the Tarwirri Indigenous Law Association of Victoria, funded through the Victorian Aboriginal Justice Agreement. She founded TC Law & Consulting, serves on legal committees and was a non‑executive director of Women of Colour Australia. She helped create the Victorian Stolen Generations Reparations Package and has a Master’s in international relations. She spoke with Global Voices on 18 January 2026.

She describes over‑incarceration as a systems failure and urges a move from punitive responses to prevention. Her priorities include properly resourced community‑led diversion programs, culturally safe youth services, justice reinvestment and clear accountability for police and child protection agencies. On child removals she warned that current practice risks a new “stolen” generation and called for investment in early family support, housing stability and culturally appropriate child and family services, with trust and resources returned to communities.

Reflecting on the nearly 20‑year Victorian Aboriginal Justice Agreement, she notes improved cultural safety in courts and greater Aboriginal participation in justice decisions, while gaps in incarceration remain. She says Victoria’s 2025 Treaty framework is historic but must be judged by outcomes, and that treaty, truth‑telling and state‑led reforms require clear accountability and long‑term, relationship‑based effort. She emphasises connection to Country and culture and advises young Indigenous people entering law to bring their whole selves, seek mentors, stay connected to community and protect their wellbeing while using law as a tool for change.