Vigils Held Across Australia One Week After Death of Five-Year-Old Girl in Alice Springs

Memorials and vigils for Kumanjayi Little Baby, the five-year-old girl whose body was found in Alice Springs one week before 2026-05-07, are scheduled for the evening of 2026-05-07 in multiple Australian locations. Many attendees will wear pink at the request of Kumanjayi Little Baby's family.

Catherine Liddle, chief executive of the Secretariat of National Aboriginal and Islander Child Care (SNAICC), told ABC News Breakfast on 2026-05-07 that the last week had been incredibly difficult and incredibly sensitive for the Alice Springs community.

She said the response from the Alice Springs community had been remarkable. Liddle observed a woman dressed head to toe in pink, including boots, getting coffee before sunrise on 2026-05-07.

The memorial locations and times on 2026-05-07 are: Alice Springs Anzac Oval 5:30pm; Darwin Parliament House 6pm-6:30pm; Adelaide Victoria Square 6:30pm-9:30pm; Sydney Town Hall 5:30pm; Perth Forrest Place 4pm-6pm; Canberra Aboriginal Tent Embassy and National Carillon 5:30pm; Sunshine Coast Cotton Tree 4:30pm; Albany Alison Hartman Gardens 5:45pm; Kalgoorlie St Barbara Square 4:30pm; Mt Canobolas near Orange 6pm; Carnarvon Town beach 6pm; Lismore Skate Park 6pm; Port Augusta Gladstone Square 5:30pm; Port Pirie Memorial Park 6pm; Broome Male Oval 5:30pm; Geraldton Edith Cowan Square 5:30pm; Ballina Ross Park and Shelly Beach 6pm; Gosford Leagues Club Park 5:30pm.

Northern Territory Child Protection Minister Robyn Cahill confirmed three department staffers were stood down following an investigation into the circumstances surrounding Kumanjayi Little Baby. Two of the three stood-down child protection workers have since been reinstated.

Abc reported that the ABC understands two of the workers have since been reinstated. Robyn Cahill stated that in the current Northern Territory child protection legislation, safety is not included in the principles underlying the department's work. She said her focus is ensuring child protection legislation focuses 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," Cahill said. Labor member for Lingiari Marion Scrymgour is a former Northern Territory child protection minister. She said that if there were credible reports that Kumanjayi Little Baby was at risk, the department should have acted.

"We need to stop thinking that these little ones can stay in the same at-risk environment," Scrymgour said. Marion Scrymgour said multiple governments had failed to implement recommendations from several reviews into child protection. She said that sometimes internally in the department there is too much conjecture and discussion about the Stolen Generations and that needs to stop.

Senator Jacinta Nampijinpa Price said fears of creating more Stolen Generations and the preference for children to remain with kin or family were part of the problem. She said she had always been vilified for speaking about conditions in remote communities and town camps. Senator Jacinta Nampijinpa Price called for a level of inquiry to understand the failings of the child protection system.

Ben Grimes is CEO of the North Australian Aboriginal Justice Agency. He told ABC Radio Darwin there had been a consistent failure within the child protection system to engage well with families in ways that can prevent the removal of children.

Ben Grimes stated that the prison system lacked support for those transitioning out of incarceration and that poor housing infrastructure contributes to child safety issues. Ben Grimes said it is very difficult for children to grow up safely without stable accommodation.

He criticised Northern Territory government leaks revealing that Kumanjayi Little Baby had been the subject of reports to child protection, calling it a significant breach of confidentiality.

Ben Grimes said that whoever breached and leaked the confidential information should be held to account. The article contains an image of an Indigenous person who has died, used with the permission of her family.

Abc reported on the memorials, the ministerial statements and the comments from advocates.