Warning for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander readers: this article contains images of a person who has died
A public memorial service for renowned Aboriginal leader Yunupingu has been held in the Northern Territory.
Friends and family of the 74-year-old, who died in early April, gathered at the East Arnhem Land island community of Gunyangara on Thursday to pay their respects.
Among them were Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and Opposition Leader Peter Dutton, who both delivered speeches honouring the late land rights campaigner.
“He had every right to be cynical, but he wasn’t,” said Mr Albanese.
“No matter how often Australia let him down, he kept striving to have us rise to his level of integrity. And as he did, what Yunupingu helped us all to see was not the reinvention of Australia, but the realisation of an even greater one.
“Yunupingu walked in two worlds with authority, power and grace, and he worked to make them whole – together.
“Now he walks in another place, but he has left such great footsteps for us to follow here in this one.”
Mr Dutton, in his speech, said Yunupingu’s “presence will always be felt in what he built”.
“Australia is truly a beneficiary of a man who cared. A man with conviction. A man who showed us just how it was to exercise the best of one’s character,” he said.
“Our generation’s admiration of Yunupingu will only amplify in generations to come.”
Yunupingu’s eldest daughter, Binmila, spoke of her father as a “welcoming man” who deserved respect.
“His being away for work was always the hardest for us. But when he was home, he was always making up for lost time, taking us out on the boat to get stingray, or in the chopper to collect tern eggs,” she said.
“There was always a little piece of us missing when Dad was away, a little hole in our heart … his plane would come in and all of us kids would run to him, so excited to see him. And when he was home, he gave everything to us.”
Yothu Yindi Foundation CEO Denise Bowden also spoke, describing Yunupingu as “a trailblazer and a pioneer for our nation, black and white, young and old”.
“He was loyal, he had high principles, and he expected those around him to adopt the same principles. To work hard and be diligent.”
Media were asked not to travel to Arnhem Land for the event, with images and vision of the memorial to be released pending final approval from Yunupingu’s family.
The service comes ahead of a private funeral and burial for Yunupingu’s family, to be held on Wednesday.
The Miwatj Health Aboriginal Corporation closed its offices on Thursday for the memorial, and only had their clinics open for emergencies.
They paid tribute to Yunupingu on their social media channels.
“Yunupingu was a prominent leader and activist for the rights of Yolŋu people,” they wrote.
“His advocacy and vision paved the way for the practical implementation of self-determination and community control, which ultimately led to the creation of community controlled and Yolŋu powered organisations across East Arnhem Land.”
The Gumatj clan leader was a powerful land rights advocate during his life, advocating for both the Yolngu people, and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people across Australia.
The chair of the Gumatj Corporation, the Yothu Yindi Foundation, and the Northern Land Council was also named Australian of the Year in 1978 due to his work negotiating with the Ranger uranium mine and Kakadu National Park.
Prime Ministers have sought his advice on Aboriginal matters in the past, including Anthony Albanese last year over the Voice to Parliament issue.