Kimberley Kitching

Kimberley Jane Elizabeth Kitching was an Australian politician, lawyer, and trade unionist who served as a Senator for Victoria from October 2016 until her death in March 2022. She was a member of the Australian Labor Party and a close ally of Opposition Leader Bill Shorten. Kitching was born in Brisbane on 16 February 1970, the daughter of Bill and Leigh Kitching. Her father was a chemistry professor and the family lived in various countries during her childhood, including England, Spain, France, Germany, and the United States. She attended Brisbane Girls Grammar School and then studied arts and law at the University of Queensland. She joined Young Labor as a student and met her future husband Andrew Landeryou at a Labor fundraising event in rural New South Wales. They married in 2000 at St Patrick's Cathedral in Melbourne. Kitching worked as a solicitor in Queensland before moving to Melbourne in 1995. She worked in the private sector for several companies, including LookSmart, IQ Media, and Drake International. She also served as a Melbourne City Councillor from 2001 to 2004 and was a senior adviser to various Labor ministers in the Victorian government, including Steve Bracks, John Lenders, and John Brumby. In 2012, Kitching became the general manager of the Victorian No. 1 Branch of the Health Services Union (HSU), a trade union representing health workers. She was involved in reforming the union after a corruption scandal that led to the conviction of former HSU national secretary Craig Thomson and former HSU East branch secretary Michael Williamson. In 2014, she gave evidence to the Royal Commission into Trade Union Governance and Corruption about her role in the HSU. In 2015, she was found by a vice president of the Fair Work Commission to have illegally completed testing on behalf of other union officials to obtain right of entry permits. In 2016, Kitching was pre-selected by the Labor Party to fill the Victorian Senate vacancy caused by the resignation of Stephen Conroy. She was sworn in as a Senator on 25 October 2016. She was supported by her friend Bill Shorten, who described her as having serene intellect and incredible warmth . She was also endorsed by former prime minister Julia Gillard. As a Senator, Kitching became known for her work on foreign affairs, defence, and human rights issues. She was a member of the Joint Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs, Defence and Trade and the Joint Committee on Intelligence and Security. She was also a founding member of the Wolverines, a cross-party group of parliamentarians who advocated for a tough stance against China's influence and interference in Australia and the region. She was vocal in criticising China's human rights abuses against Uyghurs, Tibetans, Hong Kongers, and Taiwanese people. She also supported Taiwan's participation in international organisations and called for Australia to recognise Taiwan as an independent country. Kitching was also one of the driving forces behind Australia's adoption of Magnitsky-style laws, which allow targeted sanctions against foreign officials responsible for human rights violations or corruption. She co-chaired the parliamentary inquiry into whether Australia should enact such laws and made several submissions to the inquiry. She also travelled to Washington DC in 2019 to meet with US lawmakers and officials who had championed the Magnitsky Act in America. In 2020, she received the Sergei Magnitsky Human Rights Award for her efforts to promote human rights and democracy around the world. Kitching died suddenly of a heart attack on 10 March 2022 in Strathmore, Melbourne. She had been feeling unwell while driving between two meetings and pulled over to call her husband, who alerted an ambulance. She could not be resuscitated and died at the scene. She was 52 years old. Her death shocked and saddened her family, friends, colleagues, and political opponents. She was praised as a warrior for her cause, a friend of freedom, and a true patriot who had an enormous impact in her short time in the Senate. She was also remembered as a warm, engaging, and witty person who had many deep friendships across the political spectrum. Kitching's funeral service was held at St Patrick's Cathedral on 21 March 2022. Her husband Andrew Landeryou delivered a eulogy in which he described her as daring, courageous, resilient, and magnificently impactful. He also criticised a cantankerous cabal within the Labor Party that had opposed her pre-selection and allegedly bullied her in the Senate. He said she deserved so very much better from her internal rivals and that he did not blame anyone for her death, which he called God's will . He thanked the vast majority of the Labor family who were supportive and admiring of Kitching and said he was proud of her legacy. Kitching is survived by her husband Andrew, her parents Bill and Leigh, her brother Ben, and her father-in-law Bill Landeryou, a former Victorian Labor minister.