Man who died in police custody at Darwin hospital remembered by Wadeye community

ABC NEWS (Australia)

A 68-year-old man who died in police custody at Royal Darwin Hospital on Saturday has been identified as a respected educator from the remote community of Wadeye.

Transcript

00:00Another Northern Territory community in mourning after the loss of a much-loved elder in custody.

00:09He believed in education as empowerment and he was an educator for many years himself.

00:15He was co-principal at the school at Wadair.

00:1868-year-old Tien was detained by Federal Police late last month,

00:22allegedly attempting to board a flight intoxicated.

00:25Police say he suffered a sudden and serious medical episode upon arrival at hospital

00:30and had spent the last week of his life in intensive care.

00:34His death the second in police custody in the Northern Territory in the past two weeks.

00:39We are devastated. We cannot keep living like this.

00:47There have been almost 600 First Nations deaths in custody since the 1991 Royal Commission

00:53and all of those lives were acknowledged at rallies across the country this weekend,

00:58triggered by the death of 24-year-old Walperee man, Kuminjai White, here in Alice Springs.

01:05There are now calls for an audit of Royal Commission recommendations.

01:09Governments can't ignore the groundswell or that people are concerned.

01:14Everyone's taken their eye off the ball in terms of the recommendation.

01:18Let's remember the Royal Commission wasn't about law and order.

01:22Calls for independent investigations and justice for lives lost reverberated across the nation.

01:28You want to say sorry?

01:30You take the belt off. You take the guns off.

01:33An impassioned plea from a grieving grandfather.

01:36No matter.

01:37No matter, he will offer you no more matters then.

01:38No matter!

01:39Be as a House Officer are usually First Nations who besides Mirai General's

01:39slots as well.

01:41Maybe she was confused about him.

01:42In the last pair of words First Nations or Blackfold has broken toward Young-haired След

01:43while taking jobs in North Three weeks.

01:44But he is small as the hospital at seven-country,

01:44gunned across the police, Cooper, Hot Flare, and Monty.

01:46Just for…

01:47For obtaining a life34, Julia Marie, who deliver you back to kinda and

01:49your students the Civilrukt, father of choice and how to parent.

01:51And three months later, they just ended up being their life.

01:53It will never end up.

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