Labor senator Kimberley Kitching has died suddenly at the age of 52 from a suspected heart attack.
Colleagues and friends have begun sharing tributes on social media, with Labor leader Anthony Albanese saying the party was in shock at the tragic news.
“My sincere condolences to her family. Kimberley will be missed by us all,” he said on Twitter.
Tweet from @AlboMP
Former Labor leader Bill Shorten said Senator Kitching suffered from “a heart problem” on Thursday evening in Melbourne and died soon after.
Mr Shorten said her passing was an immense loss to Labor and the nation.
“To know Kimberley was to be touched not just by her serene intellect but her incredible warmth and vivacity,” he said in a statement.
“As a Labor senator she was relentlessly energetic and conscientious recently resulting in international recognition for her human rights work.
“Our hearts go out to her husband Andrew, her family and loved ones.”
Senator Kitching was the spearhead of push to pass laws to seizing the assets of individuals who had committed human rights abuses around the world.
Known as “Magnitsky laws” after Russian lawyer Sergei Magnitsky, they have enabled the federal government to impose sanctions on Russian oligarchs in response to the war in Ukraine.
Labor MP Madeleine King wrote about how much she would miss the senator.
“She was a steadfast and supportive colleague. Smart, hardworking, dedicated, funny and fun to be around,” she wrote on Twitter.
“I wish I had told her that. I’ll miss coffees shared at Aussies & around the building. I’ll miss Kimberley.”
Prime Minister Scott Morrison also tweeted his condolences, saying he was “deeply saddened” by the shock news.
Deputy Prime Minister Barnaby Joyce released a statement on Thursday night he was terribly upset by the news.
“I am deeply, genuinely and so terribly upset to hear the tragic news about a dear person and dear friend, Senator Kimberley Kitching,” he wrote.
“She was a beautiful woman and this is a tragic loss,” he added.
“I know she is with our Lord, and I offer my sincerest and deepest condolences to her family.”
Born in Brisbane in 1970, Senator Kitching studied law at the University of Queensland and worked in business and the union movement before becoming general secretary of the Victorian division of the Health Services Union.
She served as a Melbourne City councillor and an Labor state government adviser before being elected to the Senate in 2016.
Senator Kitching joined the opposition front bench following the 2019 election as shadow assistant minister for government accountability.
-with AAP
