Death in custody: Care could not be provided in home town

By ERWIN CHLANDA

Kumanjayi White, who died in custody in Alice Springs this week, had his own house in Yuendumu but in recent times his family and the community had found it impossible to make satisfactory arrangements for his care.

Ned Jampjinpa Hargraves, a respected elder who in a statement on Thursday called White “my jaja” (grandson), said this in an exclusive interview with the Alice Springs News.

NEWS: Is Yuendumu a tight-knit community that looks after its members?

HARGRAVES: Yes. Yes.

NEWS: Kumanjayi White had problems. What did the community do to assist him, to care for him?

HARGRAVES: It was 10 or 15 years ago, the community supported him a lot. We also had him transferred to Alice Springs to take care, for carers to take care.

NEWS: Why could that not happen in Yuendumu?

HARGRAVES: Why could we not look after him in Yuendumu? Well, in Yuendumu, well … he was really kind of aggressive to family, it wasn’t really [possible] at the time. Everything wasn’t really a suitable place that we could have him. He was all right. We had to send him into town because of the medication he was taking. That’s why we had to send him into town, so that people could take care of him.

NEWS: Yuendumu has 239 dwellings. Surely, one of these could have had room for him?

HARGRAVES: He had a house. He was well looked after. I don’t know what happened with the carer.

NEWS: Would it have been possible to use the house in Yuendumu and have a carer there as he supposedly did in Alice Springs?

NEWS: We were concerned about his condition. He was angry. He was angry with his mother, with us, the family. We couldn’t take care of him. We had been taking care of him. The situation with him was … he was always angry. He was sick. We had to send him in to a clinic.

NEWS: I believe the court had ordered for him to be in some form of cared-for situation. Did the community and perhaps you yourself say to the court that you would look after him if you could get a carer appointed in his own house, in his own home town?

HARGRAVES: That already took place.

NEWS: So why did he finish up in Alice Springs? Are you saying there were things under way for him to stay in Yuendumu with a carer. Is that right?

HARGRAVES: No.

NEWS: How often and for how long has Kumanjayi White been in touch with the police and the justice system?

HARGRAVES: Look, I’m not sure. I’m going to keep that information to myself. I haven’t got that information with me. Right now I’m saying he was sent into Mparntwe (Alice Springs) where he would live in a better condition house with a carer who used to look after him … I don’t know. Yeah.

NEWS: Has the community, or people in the community, made submissions to the court that arrangements should be made for him to be looked after in his own home town?

HARGRAVES: We as a family took care of him. Yes. But because of his situation, he was sick and he wasn’t doing so well … we had to bring him into Alice Springs.

I reminded Mr Hargraves about our meeting at a rally in Alice Springs five years ago on the occasion of the death of Kumanjayi Walker in Yuendumu.

He said: “That is another case. This is not about Kumanjayi White who is my grandchild. My beloved grandson. And I’m going to take it all the way.”

He said the people responsible for White’s death should be punished. His family and friends want justice.

He is not satisfied with the authorities’ current actions: “No. I am not satisfied. They haven’t given us the footage of what happened. I already have a lawyer and we’re going to do what’s needed.”

According to the 2021 Census there are 239 private dwellings in Yuendumu.

The average number of people per household is 3.9. The average number of motor vehicles per dwelling is 1.1. The median weekly rent is $90 and the median weekly household income is $1,322.

PHOTO at top of Mr Hargraves is from last night’s coverage by the ABC which led its TV news with the death in custody story which is making headlines around the nation and the world.