“Our little queen”: Could Kumanjayi Little Baby’s death be a turning point?
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What happened to Kumanjayi Little Baby?
My name's Robin Chabanunga-Granitz. And I'm the grandfather of our little baby, Kumanjay. Little, who's a queen. Who's our little queen. And we ask that everyone, Yappa and Kariya, are together in respecting this time of sorry business and mourning.
On April 25, Kumanjay Little Baby was reported missing from her bed at the old-timers' town camp just south of Alice Springs. Five days later, after a community unifying effort, her body was found. She was five years old. Soon after, community members found the man accused of killing her. They called police and now a 47-year-old man has been charged with murder and other charges we can't mention for legal reasons. For the past week, as her family and community have mourned, Alice Springs in Bartway has once again been placed under the intensity of the national gaze. Its grief, anger and calls for justice broadcast across the country.
We must now let the justice system do its work. I also ask all our politicians, leaders to be respectful of this sorry time. We too need to work together on this, on many issues facing our people and communities here in Central Australia. But our little babies, Passing must not become a politician issue or an argument.
I'm Daniel James, and you're listening to 7am. Today, the Chief Executive of SNAICC, the national peak body advocating for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children and young people, Catherine Little, on Kumanjay Little Baby, the grief in Mbatwe, and the questions that need to be asked without turning her death into another political fight. It's Tuesday, May 5. Catherine, you've been up in Alice Springs during this horrendous event. Now that things have settled down, the alleged perpetrator has now been charged. How is the community doing more broadly up there?
I think the way our community is doing is the way the rest of the nation is doing. If you're feeling sad still, we're still feeling sad.
How did the community respond to Kumanjayi's disappearance?
Every now and then people are angry. You still get a bit angry because this, what has happened is absolutely horrific. It is absolutely horrific. And how you might be responding at any point in time might depend on where you're sitting or what you can see. I know that many of the volunteers are still feeling very traumatised, as is anyone who lives on a town camp. And part of that concern for a lot of people has been, you know, how do you respond to moments in time like this? When the alleged perpetrator was found, you know, he was found by community. It was community that rang the police and said, we have found him. And there was that moment, and the violence in that moment is not acceptable. Violence can never be acceptable.
But it was a flashpoint.
At the Alice Springs Hospital... Situation critical. A kind of chaos our nation rarely ever knows. Tensions red hot in Australia's red centre. For Alice Springs Police, it was a choice of run or hide. Last night, the Northern Territory Police apprehended Jefferson Lewis. During that apprehension, our police were assaulted, ambulance officers were assaulted. We conveyed Mr Lewis to the Alice Springs Hospital and shortly after, a large crowd gathered and tried to gain access to that hospital and access to Mr Lewis. Police responded and we called out all the resources we had available to quell that violent disturbance.
And that flashpoint, even that, while completely unacceptable, was a moment in time in a community that is a microcosm that was incredibly heightened. and there was so much misinformation on it, like things like saying it was payback when in actual fact it was not payback. And Mr Granitz has been very clear on that and very clear in that he didn't want people to behave like that, and people now have to settle down and be calm. And I think that's probably the voice we need to listen to most on this. That is what Aboriginal leadership is about. The person with the authority to speak has told us... It's time to mourn. And I know I heard him when he was speaking to a group of us last week talking about Kumanjai Little Baby.
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