Booze will be allowed back into hundreds of Northern Territory remote Indigenous communities under "disgraceful" new laws replacing Intervention-era alcohol bans.
The NT government says its amended liquor laws, which were passed by parliament late on Tuesday, will give communities "greater power" to choose if they want alcohol restrictions when a commonwealth law expires in July.
But social service groups say the legislation is disappointing, disgraceful, and lacks integrity.
"The passing of this legislation before any consultation has been done with Aboriginal communities and against the advice of Aboriginal community-controlled organisations in the NT is disgraceful," NT Council of Social Service chief executive Deborah Di Natale says.
"At best the government's process around these significant liquor changes lacks integrity."
Under the law, communities must choose to remain alcohol-free. If they don't there will be no alcohol restrictions or bans when the commonwealth law expires on July 17
The Association of Alcohol and other Drug Agencies NT says the changes "will allow alcohol to freely flow back into communities that have been dry for the past 15 years".
"It's extremely disappointing that this legislation has been pushed through," executive officer Peter Burnheim said.
"Little to no preparatory work has been done to help communities to develop effective alcohol management strategies or to provide additional resources to respond to this change."
The Northern Land Council called on the NT government to withdraw the legislation and consult with health experts and Indigenous groups.
"For us this is about our lives and our people," chair Samuel Bush-Blanasi said.
"The government has to take time to listen to the concerns of our health professionals and community leaders when they are making these important decisions that affect our mob out bush."
Chief Minister Nicole Fyles said the commonwealth laws were one of the last remnants of the race-based Intervention targeting Aboriginal Territorians.
Protesters marching to Sydney's Town Hall in the CBD, to rally against the NT Intervention on June 21, 2008. AAP Image/Dean Lewins Source: AAP Image/Dean Lewins
"This government will not support continuing the mandatory restrictions and obligations of the Intervention," she said.
The NT government says extra support will be provided to communities that don't opt in to ensure alcohol returns "safely and that any risks are properly managed".
About 100 communities, which were already under other NT liquor restrictions before the commonwealth law came into force in 2007, will revert to the previous controls.
About 430 community living areas, town camps and other small communities won't and will have to opt into the new scheme to remain alcohol-free.
The NT Aboriginal Medical Services Alliance has previously warned the law change would be a "recipe for disaster and open the floodgates" to alcohol in communities.
"If (communities) either do nothing or choose to let takeaway alcohol in, the upshot will be a mix of dry and unrestricted communities that will be impossible to monitor, with alcohol flowing freely between them," a spokeswoman said.
"It's a recipe for disaster."
The territory has the highest per capita alcohol consumption and rate of alcohol-attributable deaths in Australia, according to the NT Council of Social Service.
The Howard government said the Intervention was an attempt to address violence, abuse and poverty in Indigenous communities.
