One of Australia's most influential Aboriginal leaders Yunupingu has died after a long illness in the Northern Territory, aged 74. Yunupingu was a trailblazer in the fight for land rights and the constitutional recognition of Indigenous people in Australia.
Yunupingu, Yolŋu leader and campaigner for Indigenous rights, dies aged 74. The revered Yolŋu elder Yunupingu has died in his homelands after a lifetime fighting for the rights of his Gumatj clan, his country and all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.
One of Australia's most influential Indigenous leaders, Yunupingu, has died aged 74, his family said on Monday, months before a referendum on whether to recognise the community for the first time in the country's constitution.
The Yothu Yindi Foundation confirmed Yunupingu died peacefully at his home aged 74, surrounded by his family and ceremonial adornments on Monday. “It is hard to put into words what this loss means for this country,” Ms Burney told reporters.
Indigenous actor, musician, artist and activist Uncle Jack Charles has died at the age of 79. His publicist confirmed on Tuesday morning Charles had suffered a stroke and died at Royal Melbourne hospital.
Aboriginal peoples
Genetic studies appear to support an arrival date of 50–70,000 years ago. The earliest anatomically modern human remains found in Australia (and outside of Africa) are those of Mungo Man; they have been dated at 42,000 years old.
Cassius Turvey died last October, 10 days after he was hit with a metal pole. One man was charged with his murder shortly after his death.
Maori singer, songwriter and producer Dalvanius Prime has died. Most famous for the 1984 hit single, Poi E, a collaboration with Ngoi Pewhairangi, Maui Dalvanius Prime began his musical career in 1969 when he and his brother Eddie and sister Barbara entered a talent competition as pop trio The Fascinations.
Yunupingu died at the Royal Darwin Hospital, Northern Territory, at about 5:00 pm on 25 July 2017, aged 46. He had lived with liver and kidney damage for many years due to hepatitis B which he had contracted in childhood.
The Gippsland massacres, many led by the Scots pastoralist Angus McMillan, saw between 300 and 1,000 Gunai (or Kurnai) people murdered. 1840–1860. The Eumeralla Wars between European settlers and Gunditjmara people in south west Victoria included a number of massacres resulting in over 442 Aboriginal deaths.
Between 11,000 and 14,000 Aboriginal people died, compared with only 399 to 440 colonisers. The tallies of the dead are not the only measure of what took place, according to Dr Bill Pascoe, a digital humanities specialist and key researcher on the project.
On 26 January 1838 Nunn and his men massacred up to 50 Aboriginal people camped at Waterloo Creek.
Key statistics
As at 30 June 2021 there were 984,000 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, representing 3.8% of the total Australian population.
Bennelong. Bennelong, born c1764 of the Wangal people, is one of the most notable Aboriginal people in the early history of Australia. Also known as Wolarwaree, Ogultroyee and Vogeltroya, he was one of the first to live with the settlers, to be 'civilised' into the European way of life and to enjoy its 'benefits'.
Aboriginal customs for honouring and disposing of the dead varied greatly across Victoria, but burial was common. Aboriginal burial places normally contain the remains of one or two people, although cemeteries that contain the remains of hundreds of people buried over thousands of years have been found.
Garma: Kidney failure that killed Dr G Yunupingu highlights huge problem for Indigenous Australians.
Personal life and family
Yunupingu was married to a fellow teacher, Yalmay Marika Yunupingu of the Rirritjingu clan, also referred to as Yalmay Marika and Yalmay Yunupingu. He is survived by five daughters and five grandsons.
Sponsored. After years of heavy drinking, in 2007 he attended a rehabilitation clinic and was diagnosed as suffering from diabetes and high blood pressure, which led to renal failure.
A popular Samoan musician Ma'ilo Ben Vai has died after a long battle with cancer. The singer, composer and music producer was regarded as an institution in the music scene in the early 1990s.
The late ukulele-playing Hawaiian, Israel Kamakawiwo'ole, may have weighed 1,000lb when he died, but don't dare call him fat.
Singer Onie Wheeler died of a massive heart attack while performing on the stage of the Grand Ole Opry.
Eric Edgar Cooke (25 February 1931 – 26 October 1964), nicknamed the Night Caller and later the Nedlands Monster, was an Australian serial killer who terrorised the city of Perth, Western Australia, from September 1958 to August 1963. Cooke committed at least 22 violent crimes, eight of which resulted in deaths.
The most recent genocidal massacre took place in the Northern Territory in 1928, when several hundred Warlpiri, Anmatyere and Kaytetye people were killed in reprisal for killing a dingo trapper.
The Inquest into the Deaths of Seven First Nations Youth began on October 5, 2015, and investigated the deaths of: Jethro Anderson, Reggie Bushie, Robyn Harper, Kyle Morrisseau, Paul Panacheese, Curran Strang, and Jordan Wabasse. The Inquest concluded on June 28, 2016, when the Jury rendered its verdict.