Northern Territory forcibly relocates over 100 Indigenous people to remote town; residents denounce being 'herded like livestock'

According to the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC News), the Northern Territory government has closed Yilli Short-Stay Accommodation (YiSSA) in Darwin's Marrara area — Darwin's largest Indigenous transitional accommodation facility — and relocated up to approximately 120 Indigenous residents to the town of Batchelor, roughly 100 kilometers away with a population of around 500. Approximately 200 protesters gathered outside YiSSA to condemn the government's decision to close the facility, with some residents saying they felt "dehumanized" and ignored.

[Government statements vs. on-the-ground reality]

Northern Territory Chief Minister Lia Finocchiaro claimed the government had "established alternative facilities to provide residents with food, care, clothing, warm beds, and shelter from wind and rain." However, this statement contrasted with conditions on the ground the night before the relocation. According to ABC News, on the morning of the day before the relocation, heavy machinery was still operating at the new Batchelor facility site, with electricians, plumbers, and fencing contractors all on site working against the clock — meaning that, at the last minute, the "alternative facility" to which residents were about to be sent had not yet been completed, and whether its basic living and medical conditions could be in place on schedule was not independently confirmed.

ABC News also disclosed that the Northern Territory government had previously rejected a federal government proposal regarding joint ownership of the site. While the federal government had sought to maintain the facility's operation through joint ownership, the Northern Territory chose the path of closure.

[Residents: "We are human beings"]

YiSSA resident Jane Garrutju Gandaŋu said bluntly: "They are treating us like livestock being driven from one paddock to another; we are human beings." Another resident, Rose Laynbalaynba, said helplessly: "I don't know where I'm going to sleep tonight. I've asked a few friends to help me send my luggage to my niece's place, but I can't even afford a night or two of accommodation."

[Medical access facing rupture]

YiSSA's core function extends far beyond "temporary accommodation" — it is a vital hub for Indigenous people from remote communities to obtain medication refills, attend medical appointments, and visit relatives in Darwin. Elcho Island resident Harry Garrawurra warned that the relocation would affect medical access for vulnerable groups across the entire Top End region.

"For other patients from Elcho, Ramingining, Milingimbi, Yirrkala, this is really painful, because they mainly pick up their medications in Darwin," Garrawurra told ABC News. "We have nowhere else to stay — this is a good place; the buses come and take all the patients to the clinic or hospital."

Laynbalaynba expressed the same concern. She pointed out that YiSSA provides convenient access between sick relatives from remote communities and the hospital — "We see many sick people being sent to the hospital and sent back, and we don't have to feel sad and worried for them, because they are being taken care of."

[Children and family networks]

YiSSA resident Janelle Guyirkuyir worried that the relocation would have a devastating impact on young children who had established a stable rhythm of life in Darwin. "I feel sorry for the children," she said. "Young children need stability; they need to be in a place where they can feel love and safety." Laynbalaynba added that YiSSA also provides accommodation for children returning home from boarding school during holidays — "My granddaughter is coming home this week, but when she comes back, where will she find me? She might come home and see her grandmother sleeping outside."

[Chaos surrounding the relocation date itself]

According to ABC News, Chief Minister Finocchiaro announced last Thursday that YiSSA would close the following day, but information sheets received by residents showed the facility would not close until the day of relocation itself, with two buses arranged to assist with the move. In a decision affecting the basic accommodation and medical security of more than 100 Indigenous people, the closure date itself was changed back and forth, creating avoidable uncertainty.

Information sheets held by residents also showed that, although fees would be reduced by 10 Australian dollars per day after relocating to Batchelor, lunch and dinner would no longer be provided. Some residents have already said they cannot afford alternative accommodation, and their actual destinations after relocation were not addressed in the report; whether the new Batchelor facility can truly compensate for YiSSA's original functions of medical, educational, and family-visit support remains a point of disagreement between residents and the government.