A 23 year man left his home in Bangladesh 3 short months ago and travelled half way around the world to Darwin for the opportunity of a lifetime at our University.
Yesterday, while sleeping peacefully in his bed, he was attacked savagely and left clinging for life. Today he lost that battle.
He will never go on to finish his studies or follow his dreams.
With each crime, with each loss of life, we stand together as a community and call for urgent change but change never comes.
We cannot become numb to this level of atrocity, it is not normal.
The Territory is in a state of emergency.
Territorians do not feel safe in their homes, in their business or in their community.
The distress, despair and anger right across the Territory is palpable. Territorians and visitors cannot be expected to live in constant fear. In constant grieving.
Words will never be enough to express the heartbreak and sorrow we all feel at another senseless, and avoidable loss of life.
The increasing daily risk to life being experienced across the Territory must be dealt with through a coordinated, targeted and urgent response. Just as we come together in times of natural disaster to take back control of service delivery and safety I call on the Chief Minister to bring together every available government resource now and take control of our streets.
Our sincerest condolences go to Sifat’s family, his flat mates who tried to save him, his friends and the whole Bangladesh, University and multicultural communities of the Northern Territory.
We must also think of the first responders and emergency services who have worked hard in ever worsening circumstances.
ENDS.