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WARNING: Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander readers are warned that this story includes the name and image of an Indigenous person who may have died.
Three staff members working in the Northern Territory's child protective services department have been stood down as an investigation is launched into the events leading up to Kumanjayi Little Baby's death, Sky News has been told.
WARNING: Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander readers are warned that this story includes the name and image of an Indigenous person who may have died. Three members of staff working in the Northern Territory’s child protection department have been stood down as the minister launches an external investigation into the events leading up to the death of five-year-old Kumanjayi Little Baby in Alice Springs.
The girl’s body was found in the Todd River bed last Thursday, five days after she was last seen holding hands with 47-year-old Jefferson Lewis at the Old Timers town camp. Six notifications about Kumanjayi Little Baby’s welfare were made to the NT child protection department in the six weeks before her disappearance, The Australian reported on Tuesday.
Northern Territory Child Protection Minister Robyn Cahill told Sky News she had asked the department for information about their interactions with the girl and her family on the Monday after she disappeared.
“Three people have been stood down from their positions as of today,” Ms Cahill said. “And I am calling for an independent investigation from someone who is removed from the existing situation so we can have total accuracy and be sure that we are getting the information that we need to get to understand how this failure could happen.
” The minister has vowed to reform the Northern Territory’s child protection system, saying she is aware of other cases where children are living in unsafe conditions.
“I can’t express just how frustrating it has been to really dig into what we’re doing in child protection, how we are looking after these children, and why the safety of these children hasn’t been the absolute priority across the board with these investigations,” she said. Jefferson Lewis, 47, was arrested over the alleged murder of Kumanjayi Little Baby.
Picture: NT Police “I have, over the past 12 months, looked at case after case after case where we have seen years go by of notifications before children are actually taken in to care and safety. And quite frankly, this is not good enough and it cannot continue. ” The NT Government is expected to introduce long-planned changes to child protection legislation to the Parliament next week.
Sky News understands the legislation will remove some of the emphasis from the Aboriginal Child Placement Principle, which dictates that an Aboriginal child who is removed from their parents is first placed with another family member, and only placed with a non-Indigenous carer as a matter of last resort. Those who have advocated against the principle have previously been accused of creating a second Stolen Generation, but Ms Cahill said she was not concerned about any potential criticism.
“I’ve already been accused of being a racist and I’m OK with that because if caring about children makes me a racist I will wear that badge with honour,” she said. “We are not creating another Stolen Generation, what we are saying is ‘I’m not going to abandon these kids’.
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