A group of Indigenous women prisoners have made a rendition of a Midnight Oil song in their own language as part of a Department of Justice education program.
Commissioner for Corrective Services, Mike Reynolds said guitarist for Midnight Oil, Jim Moginie helped with the project, mixing and mastering the recording of The Dead Heart, along with five original songs by the women at the Eastern Goldfields Regional Prison (EGRP), sung mostly in the Ngaanyatjarra language of the Western Desert.
Commissioner Reynolds said the tracks had been captured on an album called Minymaku Kurturtukatja – Heart of a Woman, in which the women tell stories of homeland, family, forgiveness and love.
He said the education program, designed by staff and prisoners at the EGRP, aimed to give Ngaanyatjarra speakers literacy skills in the language through creative writing.
Commissioner Reynolds said the course empowered the women, who were mostly untrained in music, to explore and write about their experiences and emotions, forming songs and translating them into Ngaanyatjarra — including the lyrics of The Dead Heart.
“Engaging prisoners in music and education programs contributed significantly to their rehabilitation and reintegration,” he said.
“In addition to personal development, this innovative program gives participants valuable language and translating skills which they could put to use in the community.”
Project facilitator at the EGRP, Ange Leech (pictured) said it was incredibly moving to see the strength and commitment that the women invested in the course and writing the songs.
“We’ve always made programs that students want to participate in and do everything we can to give them the best chance of success when they leave,” Ms Leech said.
