Leaders call for child protection reviews ahead of Kumanjayi Little Baby vigils

A shrine for five-year-old Kumanjayi Little Baby remains outside Old Timers camp in Alice Springs. (ABC News: Xavier Martin) Memorials will be held across the country to remember Kumanjayi Little Baby, the five-year-old girl whose body was found in Alice Springs one week ago. Territory leaders have called for a review into child protection in the Northern Territory following her alleged murder. NT Child Protection Minister Robyn Cahill said she was working to ensure child protection legislation focused on "safety first". Link copiedShareShare articleAboriginal and Torres Strait Islander readers are advised that this article contains the image of an Indigenous person who has died, used with the permission of her family. One week on from the discovery of Kumanjayi Little Baby's body in Alice Springs, communities across Australia will hold vigils for the five-year-old girl tonight, with many wearing pink at her family's request. Speaking to ABC News Breakfast this morning, Catherine Liddle, the chief executive of Secretariat of National Aboriginal and Islander Child Care (SNAICC), said the last week had been "incredibly difficult and incredibly sensitive" for the Alice Springs community. Ms Liddle said despite this, the response from the community had been "remarkable". Catherine Liddle says today is a time for people to focus on the loss of Kumanjayi Little Baby and her grieving family. (ABC News: Mark Moore) "One of the first things I've seen this morning, and that was before our sunrise, was a lady getting coffee and she was dressed head to toe in pink and that included boots," she said. "For me, that was an incredibly grounding moment because it brought us back to where we need to be. The memorials are set to be held across multiple locations tonight, including: Leaders from across the territory have paid tribute to Kumanjayi Little Baby and many have spoken publicly about systemic failures, particularly in child protection. Northern Territory Child Protection Minister Robyn Cahill yesterday confirmed three department staffers were stood down following an investigation into the circumstances of Kumanjayi Little Baby. The ABC understands that two of the workers have since been reinstated. Speaking to the ABC's 730 program last night, Ms Cahill said: "Clearly the processes that should have been followed appeared not to have been followed, and it was for that reason I asked for advice as to how that process failed, which led to the investigation." The ABC is not suggesting wrongdoing on the part of the five-year-old's family. Robyn Cahill says her focus is on how her government can improve the child protection system. (ABC News: Michael Franchi) The minister said her focus going forward was ensuring child protection legislation focused on "safety first". "I was horrified to learn that in our current legislation, in the principles underlying the work that should be done by the department, safety is not even included," Ms Cahill said. Labor member for Lingiari Marion Scrymgour said if there were credible reports that Kumanjayi Little Baby was at risk, "the department should have acted". Marion Scrymgour says within the department there is "too much conjecture" about the Stolen Generations. (ABC News: Pete Garnish) "We need to stop thinking that these little ones can stay in the same at-risk environment," she said. "We're seeing young kids, whether they're Aboriginal or not Aboriginal, who are vulnerable and at risk in the Northern Territory fall through the gaps, and we've seen it for many years." Ms Scrymgour, who is also a former NT child protection minister, said multiple governments had failed to implement recommendations from several reviews into child protection. Senator Jacinta Nampijinpa Price said fears of creating more Stolen Generations and "the preference always [being] for children to remain with kin, with family" were part of the problem. Jacinta Nampijinpa Price has called for an inquiry to examine the conditions at town camps and the child protection system. (ABC News: Matt Roberts) Speaking on media personality Kyle Stefanovic's podcast, Senator Price said she had always been vilified for speaking about conditions in remote communities and town camps. "It's important that a level of inquiry takes place to understand the failings of the child protection system which I have been calling out for years," she said. "All I've ever argued for is for those who I'm close to, like the baby girl we just lost, to have the same opportunities, to have the opportunity to live in a safe home that is free of violence, where they can get an education, where their needs are met, where their health is taken care of, where they're not being neglected, where they can grow up to become well-rounded adults," she said. Legal experts have pointed to a lack of early prevention as part of the broader problem within the child protection system, as well as housing and the prison system as contr

Leaders call for child protection reviews ahead of Kumanjayi Little Baby vigils

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