Qld govt rejects indigenous top cop bid

Palm Island rioter Lex Wotton has failed in a bold attempt to install an indigenous police commissioner in Queensland.

Mr Wotton was one of the driving forces behind a petition, bearing 113 signatures, to state parliament calling for the new position to serve alongside the current commissioner, Ian Stewart.

The petition drew inspiration from the Queensland Family and Child Commission, which must have one of its two commissioners be an Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander person.

But Police Minister Bill Byrne quickly dismissed the idea, saying there wasn't any plans to change the Queensland Police Service's executive structure "based on a person's racial profile".

In responding to the petition, Mr Byrne argued QPS "maintains effective relationships" with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities and provided forums for indigenous people to discuss policing issues.

Mr Wotton, who spent 20 months in jail for inciting the infamous 2004 riots following the death in custody of Palm Island man Mulrunji Doomadgee, insisted Mr Byrne was rejecting petitioners' concerns with lip service.

"In the end really, it just goes to show the barriers the police and government are pushing to make it about `them' and `us'," he told AAP.

"It's not a policing service for black and white."

Mr Wotton pointed to recent footage from the troubled indigenous community of Aurukun, which showed police watching fights instead of intervening.

"They weren't building better relations; just standing around and allowing the community unrest to run its own course," he said.

Mr Wotton arrived at parliament on Tuesday to watch Mr Byrne's response be officially tabled and was met by about 20 police officers at the entrance.

He said the increased police presence was part of an ongoing effort to "demonise" him since the 2004 riots.

Mr Wotton has also led a class action against QPS on behalf of Palm Islanders claiming alleged police failures after Mulrunji's death were racially discriminatory.

Justice Debra Mortimer has reserved her decision in that case.