ANDY PARK, HOST: Australia Day means different things for different people. For some of you, it's about becoming an Australian citizen. For others, it's a holiday, a day to celebrate a chapter of this land's history. But for some of you, this is a day of mourning and a reminder that this country's journey to reconciliation with First Nations people is a long one. For Labor Senator Malarndirri McCarthy. Today, the 26th of January has suddenly had a new meaning for her. A personal meaning, if you like. And she says she feels gratitude today because her son is okay. Senator, welcome back to RN Drive for 2024.
MALARNDIRRI MCCARTHY: Hello, Andy, and hello to all your listeners. Thanks for having me.
PARK: I'm terribly sorry to hear about your son. You wrote about this in a really moving piece in The Australian today. Tell me what happened. How is he?
MCCARTHY: Well, just not long after Boxing Day, Andy, my youngest son, experienced, chest pains and, thankfully went to the hospital to check it out with his girlfriend. And she's been amazing in supporting him and, and found out that he'd had a heart attack at age 25. So from there, things kind of, took on a very serious note. He was certainly moved very quickly to the coronary care unit. And, it was a really, anxious, 5 to 7 days.
PARK: What are the doctors saying now? What's the latest prognosis?
MCCARTHY: Well, he had to go back in. And this is the thing. I'd been heading back to Darwin after he came out the first time, and then we had to rush back down again a second time, a couple of weeks ago. Because the scarring on his heart had caused further complications to the other side of his heart, which meant he was, blacking out, and they had to to revive him every time which was just, an incredibly traumatic experience for him and and for those of us standing with him at the time and, through that episode, the doctors would talk to us about the need for what they call a defibrillator- there were two different types. And one of them that he's receiving, requires an insertion in the side of his body, so that the leads can go up to the heart and give an automatic stun to the heart, should this occur when he does eventually leave the hospital. So yeah, it's a really tough time.
PARK: What a horrible experience. It sounds like he's getting some good medical care, which is something you've written about being grateful for. It's not like Australia Day needed another layer of meaning for you and your family. You know, you've written about this before. You've got Irish ancestors who, one that sailed here as a free man in 1842. You, of course, have your mother's families in Borroloola. In your words, and because of these two kinds of heritages, if you like, how do you feel about Australia Day?
MCCARTHY: I do see Australia Day as a day of deep reflection. There has been and continues to be many injustices in terms of First Nations people with the high rates of incarceration, the fact that, the health situation of First Nations people is still way below that of non-Indigenous Australians. I'm deeply passionate about that. And I have that as a portfolio area now. And of course, I see it as a day that we need to be proud of those who've done well. I'm enormously proud Yalmay Yunupingu, who is a senior Australian of the year.
PARK: Following on from Tom Calma of course. And you actually wrote in the the Northern Territory News, about two years ago, that you both celebrate and commemorate January 26th? Is that still the case?
MCCARTHY: Absolutely. I wake in the mornings. I feel that the morning of this day is, and I use the word 'morning' as in sunrise. But there is that deep reflection of the very sad times, certainly for my mother's side of the family, where my grandmothers, even today, can still talk about, when they were terrified with the massacres that occurred at various points in their childhood, in the Gulf country. And we know those to be very true. We also then go on throughout the day to commemorate the fact that we do have a really good country where young people can try and excel in all areas- our athletes, our footballers, our scientists, our professors as First Nations people, our doctors. So there is almost a, you know, a twist to it all. And one of the things I do love about our country is that we are a democracy. And we can express all of these views and opinions. And I believe we are such a smart country, we will come to a position that all of us will know, will bring us to a better place.
PARK: On that democracy that we enjoy. A number of Invasion Day rallies have been held across the country in the past 24 hours, largely peaceful as far as I've seen. Did you attended any of them ?
MCCARTHY: Today I didn't. I'm still with my son. I have, in the past, attended, both those rallies. Plus, the, Australia Day citizenship ceremonies that we've had in Darwin, and Palmerston. So again, I see that as the beautiful thing about our country that, we can do all of these things and still show respect.
PARK: Those marches and rallies largely called to change the date. Are you actively advocating for that amongst your government colleagues at the moment?
MCCARTHY: I've always been a firm believer of changing the attitude. And I think the referendum showed us this, that so many Australians still do not know about the history of our country. With Yolngu/Balanda and Black/White - we need to really inform and educate our country, especially those who come from overseas, who didn't know and still don't know much about, First Nations history here. So I think changing attitudes is really important to me, because I think that even if there was a change of date, if we haven't changed the attitudes, we're still going to have the same divisive conversations. We've got to do more. We've got to do more about the substance, and the education and the learning.
PARK: It was your government that failed to convince the Australian people to vote for an indigenous voice of Parliament in last year's referendum. You'd have to admit that it does appear that your government's burning priority of last year now seems to be all but forgotten. Don't you agree?
MCCARTHY: It certainly hasn't been forgotten. I do believe that we've had to give people time. Let me remind your listeners of the great hope that there was in this, especially by First Nations communities across the country and that disappointment and deep devastation was something that we had to give people time to deal with in their own way. And I have to say that, certainly in Northern Australia, those communities that voted overwhelmingly 'yes' in the 90%, we know that we have to keep working with them moving forward. And we're certainly going to be doing that, come the next sittings in February.
PARK: So what are you offering? What is Labor's Plan B? Is the government still committed to the Uluru Statement of the heart?
MCCARTHY: Well, I hear people talk about plan B, but I just want to remind your listeners that this was about winning the referendum and moving on from the status quo. We didn't win. What we have to do is ensure that the status quo that actually currently remains has to be better. So what I can do as assistant minister in indigenous health is move on those health things, its to be rolling out those renal dialysis units. We want to have 30 of those rolled with four chairs in areas that we know where the chronic disease is. I've been to Wilcannia, I've been to Menindee, looking at the areas there in terms of their concerns... This is one component of the area of closing the gap. But that's what we have to do now, is actually make those things happen.
PARK: Just finally, your government has announced, changes to the stage three tax cuts, which is also set to benefit more than 10 million Australians. But what else do you think should be on the table to address these cost of living crisis? I mean, it affects all Australians, particularly vulnerable Australians, as I imagine many of your constituents might be feeling.
MCCARTHY: Well, we actually did spend that time through 2023, working on cost of living with cheaper childcare, with cheaper medicines, rolling out the urgent care clinics, and ensuring that, people did have the ability to have pay increases, especially in the care sector. So we worked on those areas, and now we've added, what we hope in the next, sittings of parliament, will be these tax reforms.
PARK: Malarndirri McCarthy, is a Labor senator from the Northern Territory. Thank you so much for joining me. And, much love to the family and your son. Hope he has a speedy recovery. Thanks for your time today.