SYDNEY, Nov 13 — Cases of Indigenous women shackled while giving birth and growing numbers of children in detention are “embarrassing” to Australia, the UN’s special rapporteur on Indigenous rights said today.

UN Special Rapporteur Albert Barume said he visited Australia because he saw Prime Minister Anthony Albanese’s attempt to recognise First Nations people in the constitution as a sign of progress, despite a national referendum failing to pass in 2023.

Barume ended his two-week visit today with a bleak message that Indigenous people’s rights are “unsafe” in Australia because they are controlled by states and territories, not the national government.

“The state of protection of Indigenous people’s rights is a bit embarrassing. I heard the story of women giving birth shackled — I couldn’t believe it,” he told a news conference in Sydney.