Calls are growing for improved safety and domestic, family and sexual violence services in remote Northern Territory Aboriginal communities. A 26-year-old man has faced court over the alleged murder of a 16-year-old girl in a domestic violence attack in Alpurrurulum. Special Envoy Marion Scrymgour has asked governments to reopen the police station there, which closed in 2018. She says violence is also affecting women and children in Wadeye and Katherine. The Aboriginal Medical Services Alliance Northern Territory has called for urgent investment in specialist support, safe accommodation and permanent police presence.
Community projects under the Remote Australia Employment Services program are now running in more than 60 remote communities. The projects aim to help job seekers gain skills, experience and paid work. Around 25 per cent of provider funding will go towards locally designed projects. Minister for Indigenous Australians Malarndirri McCarthy said the projects back local people and ideas. In Port Hedland, Western Australia, Ashburton Aboriginal Corporation is delivering pre-employment training and mentoring.
A new Royal Lifesaving Australia report has found five remote Northern Territory community pools have closed. It also found nine pools have infrastructure more than 30 years old. Royal Lifesaving NT executive director Floss Roberts pointed to the Mutitjulu pool, near Uluru, as a working model. She said the Northern Territory has the highest drowning rate per capita in Australia.
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Houses in Alice Springs town camps and an outstation near Hermannsburg were damaged in a severe storm last Monday. Trees were uprooted, roofs were torn off homes and power went out across much of the region. Residents say poor-quality housing made the damage worse. The Northern Territory government says four public homes are uninhabitable and 59 storm-related repair jobs are under way, including five town camps. Residents face many costly trips to the tip to clean up.
Grants of up to $50,000 are now available for community-led projects in remote Barkly communities and Aboriginal homelands outside Tennant Creek. The funding comes through the Barkly Regional Deal and supports projects responding to local priorities. Applications close on November 9. Housing and Local Government Minister Steve Edgington said the grants would back local ideas that strengthen communities, build Aboriginal leadership and improve safety. Applications must be lodged through NT Grants.
The DMC Boys, a reggae-rock band from Doomadgee in Queensland's Gulf Country, hope to take their music worldwide. The band recently played their biggest show yet, opening for King Stingray at celebrations for the reopening of Burketown's airport. Lead vocalist Elijah Douglas said the band has inspired younger people in their community to learn music. Lead guitarist Tommy Lee Jack said music can be a healing process. King Stingray frontman Dimathaya Burarrwanga said opportunities for emerging artists remain scarce.
Eight remote communities in Far North Queensland are now getting expanded NDIS support. The communities include Aurukun, Ayton, Coen, Cooktown, Degarra, Kowanyama, Shiptons Flat and Wujal Wujal. The Remote Community Connector program helps people with disabilities apply for support and connect with local services. Most face-to-face services are delivered by Aboriginal community controlled organisations. NDIA chief executive Graeme Head said the changes follow feedback from First Nations communities that support needs to be local, trusted and easier to access.
14 new homes have been handed over to tenants in Maningrida in Arnhem Land, bringing the total delivered there under the Northern Territory Remote Housing Agreement to 34. The homes include duplexes, four-bedroom and five-bedroom houses, and one-bedroom units. Federal and Northern Territory ministers say the homes will ease overcrowding and provide safe, secure housing. The Maningrida Stage 2 subdivision is also creating local jobs. The $4 billion, 10-year agreement aims to deliver up to 2,700 homes across remote communities in the Territory.
Commonwealth, state and territory Indigenous affairs ministers met by videoconference to reaffirm their commitment to working in partnership on outcomes for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. They discussed Closing the Gap priorities ahead of next month's Joint Council meeting in Canberra. Minister Malarndirri McCarthy gave an update on economic empowerment initiatives and on food security in remote communities. Ministers also acknowledged October as Indigenous Business Month. The Northern Territory minister was unable to attend because of parliamentary business.
Police have confirmed the Laura police station in Far North Queensland is empty while recruitment is underway to replace an officer on unplanned leave. Nearby officers from Cooktown and Hope Vale are covering patrols and call-outs, more than 140 kilometres away. The Indigenous Family Violence Legal Service says any gap in remote staffing is deeply concerning for domestic violence victims. The Queensland Police Union says the position could have been filled straight away and accuses the service of cost-cutting. Police say a relieving officer is being sought as soon as possible.
A 26-year-old man, Ashton Chungaloo, has been charged with murdering a 16-year-old girl in the remote community of Alpurrurulam. Police allege he assaulted the girl before she reached the local health clinic early on Monday, where she suffered cardiac arrest and later died. Clinic staff noticed she had a number of injuries. Police said Chungaloo was believed to have been in a domestic relationship with her. He was arrested, taken to Darwin, and in Darwin Local Court was remanded in custody to appear in Alice Springs Local Court on December 10.
A 26-year-old man, Ashton Chungaloo, has been charged with murdering a 16-year-old girl in the remote community of Alpurrurulam. Police allege he assaulted the girl before she reached the local health clinic early on Monday, where she suffered cardiac arrest and later died. Clinic staff noticed she had a number of injuries. Police said Chungaloo was believed to have been in a domestic relationship with her. He was arrested, taken to Darwin, and in Darwin Local Court was remanded in custody to appear in Alice Springs Local Court on December 10.
A University of Newcastle program brought hands-on science, technology, engineering and mathematics activities to 110 students in the remote Aboriginal community of Wadeye, more than 420 kilometres south-west of Darwin. The program linked STEM learning with local culture, including Sea Country knowledge. Students tested water samples, built solar-powered circuits and designed fish traps using 3D-printed rocks and marbles. Leaders said the visit showed young people that their existing knowledge connects directly to STEM careers. The initiative was run with local partners, including Thamarrurr Sea Farmers and the Traditional Owners of Wadeye.
A 26-year-old man, Ashton Chungaloo, has been charged with murdering a 16-year-old girl in the remote community of Alpurrurulam. Police allege he assaulted the girl before she reached the local health clinic early on Monday, where she suffered cardiac arrest and later died. Clinic staff noticed she had a number of injuries. Police said Chungaloo was believed to have been in a domestic relationship with her. He was arrested, taken to Darwin, and in Darwin Local Court was remanded in custody to appear in Alice Springs Local Court on December 10.
Women in the remote Northern Territory communities of Peppimenarti and Wadeye have documented a domestic violence crisis and proposed their own solutions. Their Mapping Women and Children's Safety report was presented to the NT and federal governments three weeks ago, with a call for funding, but no government responses have yet been received. The women say their communities lack a safe house, that the Wadeye safe house is often full, and that police are often unable to attend attacks.
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A new report has found that institutions pay consultants for expertise but rarely pay senior leaders on Country for theirs. Across 35 remote communities in the Northern Territory and Kimberley, Indigenous Connection employed more than 80 people as Cultural Knowledge Providers, and another 130 asked to join. Indigenous Connection executive director Brad Martin said many organisations lack a budget or process for this work. Martin and Ian Gumbula, a Senior Yolngu leader, presented the two-and-a-half-year study at a conference in Hobart.
The East Arnhem Regional Council runs an Animal Management Program that provides veterinary services to its six communities. Working with Aboriginal Community Controlled Organisations, it extends animal health care to homelands where services are otherwise limited. The council follows a One Health approach, based on the link between animal, human and community wellbeing. Partnerships have delivered desexing, parasite control and animal health consultations across the region since 2019. In 2023, the program helped host the first East Arnhem One Health Workshop.
A 26-year-old man has been arrested after a 16-year-old girl died in a remote Northern Territory community. Police allege she was assaulted and say her death is suspicious. The girl attended a local clinic early on Monday with multiple injuries, suffered a cardiac arrest and died around 5.30am. Police say the man was believed to be in a domestic relationship with her and remains in custody. Police from Queensland are helping with the investigation, and extra officers have been sent to the community.
A woman has died in the remote Northern Territory community of Alpurrurulam following an alleged assault. Police are treating the death as suspicious and a man is in custody assisting with inquiries. Specialist detectives and forensic officers are travelling to the community. Police were alerted about 5.30am on Monday after the local clinic reported the death. Local MP Chansey Paech has called for more support for remote communities, including police resourcing, peacekeepers and action on alcohol supply.
