An Indigenous death in custody case is being closely watched by the federal government after a territory leader vigorously opposed an independent inquiry.
Senator Malarndirri McCarthy said ahead of a meeting of the Joint Council on Closing the Gap in Darwin that deaths in custody had to end and the Commonwealth was deeply concerned about the issue.
The federal minister for Indigenous Australians said there could be heated debate over deaths in custody and harsher youth crime laws as she met with state and territory counterparts and Coalition of Peaks members on Friday.
The coalition represents more than 80 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander community bodies comprising about 800 organisations and is a formal partner with Australian governments on Closing the Gap.
Friday's meeting follows the death in custody of Kumanjayi White on May 27 after being forcibly restrained by two plain clothes officers inside a supermarket in Alice Springs.
Police allege the 24-year-old, who had a mental disability and was in care, was shoplifting and assaulted a security guard.
Despite multiple calls for an independent inquiry, NT Chief Minister Lia Finocchiaro and acting police commissioner Martin Dole rejected the proposal, saying NT Police were the best to investigate the death.
Senator McCarthy has been among those calling for an independent inquiry.
When asked on Friday if the federal government might intervene and convene a national cabinet on the issue, she said "we are watching very closely".
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese would be briefed on the Closing the Gap meeting and its debates on deaths in custody, high Indigenous incarceration rates and tougher youth crime laws, she said.
Federal Attorney-General Michelle Rowland was also deeply concerned about deaths in custody and would discuss the issue at an upcoming meeting with state and territory counterparts, the senator said.
Scott Wilson, the acting lead convenor of the Coalition of Peaks, said outcomes for Indigenous people were improved when Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander organisations were properly resourced.
"On the issue of youth justice and child protection, our kids are harmed by the system that should protect them," he said.
The coalition wants a national strategy to address the drivers of youth detention and high number of Indigenous children in out-of-home care.
"That is poverty, unstable housing, racism and lack of access to services," Mr Wilson said.
"Locking up 10-year-old kids isn't justice, it's a failure of policy and compassion."
Deaths in custody and high incarceration rates were not accidents but outcomes of a system that needed deep systemic change, including eliminating racism in police, courts and corrections, he said.
All states and territories have introduced crime crackdowns after spates of violence and lawlessness, largely involving young people.
In Queensland, children as young as 10 will face adult jail time for a range of new offences after the state government in May passed its second tranche of controversial youth crime laws.
The NT government recently passed tougher bail laws, which are expected to lead to a surge in the territory's prison population, including more Indigenous youth inmates.
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