An app which has translated the police caution into 18 languages has won an award at a the NT Human Rights Fitzgerald Justice Awards.

The Aboriginal Police Caution was designed and implemented across the police force in September this year.

Acting Superintendent Matthew Parsons said the award was a “significant achievement for the NT Community and the justice system”.

“It has improved delivery and understanding of a person’s legal rights when being held and questioned in police custody.  Most importantly it is readily available on each Police iPad, and the language map included shows where each language in the Northern Territory is spoken.”

A/Superintendent Parsons said the recordings allow people to clearly and accurately understand their rights, and remove some of the language barriers officers may face.

Aboriginal Interpreter Service director Colleen Rosas said the complexities of aboriginal languages combined with the legal English could easily lead to miscommunication.

“The level of detail in this tool ensures Aboriginal suspects who speak English as an additional language are clearly able to understand their rights and responsibilities in the same way that English speakers would.”