Malarndirri McCarthy

Malarndirri Barbara Anne McCarthy (born 1970), a journalist and former Australian politician, is a Yanyuwa woman from Borroloola in the Gulf of Carpentaria, Northern Territory. As a former Labor politician, Malarndirri represented Arnhem in the Northern Territory Legislative Assembly between 2005 and 2012. A presenter with SBS/NITV News based in Sydney, Malarndirri won the Multicultural and Indigenous Media Awards 2014 Journalist of the Year and in 2013 won the inaugural Deadly Award for Journalism of the Year.

Background and early years

Born in Katherine in 1970, Malarndirri attended school in Borroloola, Alice Springs and St Scholastica's College in Glebe, Sydney, where she was school captain in 1988.

Malarndirri is a former Australian Broadcasting Corporation newsreader and journalist who began her cadetship in 1989 and worked across Australia as a news and current affairs television and radio reporter. In 1993, after a trial run at presenting the late news from Sydney, Malarndirri became the weeknight newsreader for ABC News in Darwin.

Malarndirri co-established Borroloola's first community radio station, B102.9FM The Voice of the Gulf in 1998 with assistance from the ABC, and also set up the Lijakarda Cultural Festivals & Media, Arts & Training Centre for Yanyuwa, Kudanji, Garrawa & Mara people from Borroloola. ^[1]

Political career

Malarndirri, then known as Barbara McCarthy, became the Member for Arnhem in 2005 when she was preselected to replace the retiring member Jack Ah Kit. Considered by many political pundits as a star recruit for Chief Minister Clare Martin and the Australian Labor Party, she received 73.9% of the two-party preferred vote, a 12.5% increase on Ah Kit's result.^[2] As a result of her election Malarndirri became one of ten women in the 25 seat assembly, considered at the time to be in the top 10 in the world in male to female ratio in a parliament.^[3] Malarndirri was also as one of five indigenous candidates elected, properly reflecting the population ratio of indigenous people in the Territory.

Her first term was highlighted by crossing the floor, with two other ALP members, to vote against the government's decision to divert the McArthur River to allow more mining developments, on spiritually cultural and environmental grounds, in her home country of Borroloola.^[4]

In August 2007 on the sudden death of her mother, who had been a strong advocate for the Borroloola people's struggle for land rights, language and culture and who despaired at the river diversion, Barbara McCarthy added her Yanyuwa name of Malarndirri, out of cultural respect for her mother. She was re-elected unopposed in the 2008 election.

Immediately following the election McCarthy was promoted to the ministry and was the Minister for Children and Families, Child Protection, Statehood, Women's Policy, Senior Territorians, Young Territorians and the Minister Assisting the Chief Minister on Multicultural Affairs.^[5]

At the 2012 election McCarthy was defeated by Country Liberal Party challenger Larissa Lee amid Labor's collapse in the remote portions of the Territory.

Post-political career

Malarndirri received a nomination for her breaking story on two Perth Noongar brothers, the Thorne Brothers who were in Saudi Arabia. Shayden Thorne had been arrested on terrorism charges in Riyadh, while his brother Junaid was in hiding after protesting his brothers' innocence. Both Shayden and Junaid have since return to their families in Perth, Western Australia.^[6]

Malarndirri also was a part of the NITV teams' Walkleys nomination in 2014 for NITV's coverage of the Bowraville families. In 2013 she received two Walkley nominations for her story on Mercedes-Benz that filmed its advertisement on Wave Rock in Western Australia, a place of deep cultural significance to Aboriginal custodians. The General Manager of Mercedes-Benz flew to Wave Rock to personally apologise to custodians.^[7]

Malarndirri works part-time at St Ignatius College, Sydney, with Anthony Reilly the Indigenous Students Coordinator, to develop the First Nations' Unit program and to teach a cross cultural program in an Ignatian context.

Malarndirri is currently a journalist/presenter at SBS/NITV News and presents NITV News Week in Review on SBS1 2.30pm on Fridays and on NITV on the weekend.

References