Get the appThe National Commissioner for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Children and Young People has criticised the NT Department of Children and Families over its management of the Kumanjayi Little Baby case. The commissioner did not answer questions about her assertions.
Northern Territory Senator Jacinta Nampijinpa Price says the culture of child protection needs to change after a review found extensive failings before her five-year-old niece, Kumanjayi Little Baby, went missing in Alice Springs in April. The review, tabled in NT parliament, made 45 recommendations, which the government has accepted in full. Jefferson Lewis, 47, has been charged with the girl's murder and is yet to enter a plea. Price called for a coordinated national approach to child protection, while Indigenous groups criticised the lack of First Nations involvement in the review.
An independent review has found extensive failings in the Northern Territory's child protection department following the death of five-year-old Kumanjayi Little Baby. Jefferson Lewis, 47, has been charged with her murder and is awaiting trial. The review found officers repeatedly failed to properly assess safety threats to the girl and her family. The government has accepted all 45 recommendations, and NT Children and Families Minister Robyn Cahill called the mistakes unforgivable. Indigenous advocates say poverty, housing and health issues in remote communities must also be addressed.
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Get the appFifteen children were found living unsupervised in a home in Port Hedland, in Western Australia's Pilbara region, last month. Community elders raised concerns about child neglect. National Commissioner for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Children and Young People Sue-Anne Hunter has met community members and hosted a child protection roundtable in Perth. She is now conducting a rapid review. Indigenous Australians Minister Malarndirri McCarthy has visited Port Hedland to hear from the community directly, after the Prime Minister described the matter as a state responsibility.