Alice Springs leaders seek evidence of plans to address underlying ...

The outback town of Alice Springs is under a 72-hour curfew, declared on Monday in response to a series of violent incidents.

Community leaders have expressed mixed reactions to the curfew, with some saying they are yet to see any evidence of long-term solutions aimed at preventing violence and crime.

Federal Minister for Indigenous Australians Linda Burney says the Commonwealth is investing in more police and liquor inspectors, as well as better domestic violence and youth services.

Alice Springs community leaders are pushing for more accountability from the government and other organisations tasked with combating the drivers of crime, after a series of violent incidents triggered another curfew.

Under the 72-hour curfew, declared by the Northern Territory's police commissioner on Monday, adults and children are barred from entering the town centre from 10pm to 6am each night.

Exemptions apply for people fleeing domestic violence, visiting family, caregiving, working or purchasing food from a fast food restaurant.

The Alice Springs curfew will restrict movement for people in the region from 10pm to 6am.(ABC News)

The latest curfew was triggered by a series of violent incidents, including an alleged attack on four off-duty police officers by a group of about 20 young people on Sunday morning.

A police officer was also run over outside a bottle shop on Friday and a woman was allegedly stabbed with a knife on Sunday.

On Monday night, two licensed venues on Todd Street in the town's centre were issued with 48-hour suspension notices, following what police described as a "serious incident involving riotous conduct by patrons" early on Sunday morning.

Catherine Liddle, chief executive of SNAICC — the peak body for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children — said she was disappointed another curfew had been imposed just months after a three-week youth curfew ended in Alice Springs.

"What we don't want to see is an environment where it's OK for police just to call a snap curfew, as opposed to bringing in the interventions that are required to keep the community safe," Ms Liddle said.

The curfew is being enforced between 10pm and 6am. (ABC News: James Elton)

The Arrernte-Luritja woman said she was yet to feel the impact of $250 million of federal funding promised for programs targeting social dysfunction in Alice Springs.

"We haven't had any update around the solutions that the Northern Territory government called for when they got community in the room," she said.

"What I'd like to know is: what has happened since then?"

Police are patrolling the streets during curfew hours.(ABC News: James Elton)

Armani Francois, a Central Eastern Arrernte woman and youth support worker, said she was also waiting to see benefits of the federal funding package on the ground.

"[Prime Minister Anthony] Albanese came last year and promised us $250 million to help the disadvantages of Aboriginal people and youth crime and I just don't know where that money is," she said.

Armani Francois says young people need more support.(ABC News: Shaun Kingma)

The four-year support package includes $40 million for on-country learning and $23.5 million to improve First Nations health outcomes.

Federal member for Lingiari Marion Scrymgour said now was the time for organisations to show they were using the funding effectively.

"It's not just a policing issue," she said.

"There are agencies that should be taking some responsibility here, and it's time for everyone to step up and actually be accountable for what's happening in Alice Springs."

In a statement, federal Minister for Indigenous Australians Linda Burney said the causes of social issues in Alice Springs were "complex and have been developing for years".

"We're investing in more police and liquor inspectors, and better domestic violence and youth services, along with properly funding remote schools and creating jobs in remote communities," she said.

Jared Sharp, principal legal officer at the North Australia Aboriginal Justice Agency (NAAJA), said he was concerned the police commissioner had been too quick to take advantage of the NT's new curfew laws.

"We just haven't seen the evidence that what has occurred constitutes an emergency that requires this sort of intervention," he said.

Jared Sharp says he is unconvinced this latest curfew is warranted.(ABC News: Ian Redfearn)

Mr Sharp said he also feared the curfew would inadvertently target vulnerable people.

"We are talking about some of the most marginalised and disadvantaged people in Australia, who will be sleeping rough," he said.

"We're talking about a lot of young people who don't have safe places to go at night, we're talking about people with mental health issues."

Central Land Council (CLC) chief executive Les Turner said he believed access to alcohol, combined with ongoing government neglect of remote communities, was exacerbating the social issues in Alice Springs.

"A lot of people are moving into Alice Springs because that's where the services are," he said.

"They want a better life for some of their people and their kids, [and] an education system and a health system, which is broken in our communities."

Les Turner is pushing for tougher alcohol restrictions in Alice Springs.(ABC News: Mitchell Abram)

Mr Turner, who supports the curfew as a short-term measure, said he wanted tighter controls limiting the sale of alcohol that go beyond the town's current bottle shop trading restrictions.

"I think, in my own personal opinion, alcohol is destroying our people," he said.

"There's got to be tighter controls in terms of the number of alcohol outlets [and] the sale of alcohol."

Ms Scrymgour agreed the availability of alcohol was contributing to violence and crime in Alice Springs.

"We've got to deal with grog," she said.

"Let's stop pussyfooting around this issue that grog isn't impacting on that community."

Shadow Indigenous Australians Minister Jacinta Price said more needed to be done to improve town camps in Alice Springs.

"The children that are vulnerable, they should be allowed to grow up in environments that aren't harmful for them and aren't dysfunctional," she said.

On Monday night, NT police served a notice of suspension on two licensed premises on Todd Street in Alice Springs in response to violent behaviour by patrons.

Chief Minister Eva Lawler said the government was monitoring the Alice Springs curfew, with any extensions requiring approval from the police minister.