The+Apology

Why is it important to apologise to the stolen generations?
The Bringing Them Home report found that the forced removal of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children from their families and communities has had life-long and profound consequences for those taken and has negatively affected Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities. For many of the children, removal meant that they lost all connection to family, traditional land, culture and language.

>> I//t never goes away. Just 'cause we're not walking around on crutches or with bandages or plasters on our legs and arms doesn't mean we're not hurting. Just 'cause you can't see it doesn't mean... I suspect I'll carry these sorts of wounds 'til the day I die. I'd just like it to be not quite as intense, that's all.// Confidential evidence 580, Queensland. Bringing Them Home Report

Australia's stolen generations is not a thing of the distant past. Children were being inappropriately removed from their families by Australian authorities until 1969. Many people affected by the stolen generations are still alive today and live with its effects. The Bringing Them Home report recommended that the first step in healing was the acknowledgment of the truth and the delivery of an apology. It is the responsibility of the Australian Government, on behalf of previous Australian governments to acknowledge what was done and apologise for it.

>> //This issue is a 'blank spot' in the history of Australia. The damage and trauma these policies caused are felt everyday by Aboriginal people. They internalise their grief, guilt and confusion, inflicting further pain on themselves and others around them. It is about time the Australian Government openly accepted responsibility for their actions and compensate those affected.//Archie Roach and Ruby Hunter (In Buti A, Bringing them home the ALSA way) >>

**Why should Australians today apologise for something we aren't responsible for?**
Individual Australians did not provide the apology. The apology was being given by the Australian Government in recognition of policies of past governments. Similarly, the former Australian Government apologised to Vietnam veterans for the policies of previous governments. The current Government is apologising for wrongful policies of governments. No individual Australian is being asked to take personal responsibility for actions of past governments.

**What does an apology mean to non-Indigenous Australians?**
Following on from apologies already made by all State and Territory governments and the churches, an official apology to members of the stolen generations by the Australian Government is an important step towards building a respectful relationship between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal Australians.

Respectful relationships are essential to solve problems. The apology will allow us to work together more effectively. It is an important historic step forward for our nation. The apology is not an expression of personal responsibility or guilt by individual Australians. But it does reflect our Australian values of compassion and a fair go, and allows the victims of bad policy to feel acknowledged. It's important that Australians understand the background to the apology so they understand why it's a good thing for the nation. //These days I don't understand why it should be such a big deal to say sorry for the injustices that have been doneIndigenous people// //I know some people feel differently but, to me, saying sorry just feels necessary as a first step towards moving forward together.// Daniel Johns, lead singer of Silverchair

**Why should we apologise when many Aboriginal people are actually better off because they were removed from dysfunctional families?**
It is true that some Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children were removed from their families on genuine welfare grounds. It is also true that some children who were removed received some advantages but the overwhelming impact of the forced removal policy was damaging. Most people involved in the removal of children genuinely believed they were doing the right thing. It's important to understand that the 'stolen generations' refer to those children who were removed on the basis of their race alone. In contrast with the removal of non- Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children, proof of neglect was not always required to remove Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children. That one of their parents was of Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander descent was enough. The aim of the forced removal of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children from their families was to absorb or assimilate children with mixed ancestry into the non-Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander community. As Brisbane's Telegraph newspaper reported in May 1937: >> >> Mr. Neville [the Chief Protector of WA] holds the view that within one hundred years the pure black will be extinct. But the half-caste problem is increasing every year. Therefore their idea is to keep the pure blacks segregated and absorb the half-castes into the white population. Perhaps it will take one hundred years, perhaps longer, but the race is dying. >> The Bringing Them Home report found that many children were removed solely on the basis of skin colour. Because of this, siblings from the one family who were considered to be of lighter skin colour would be removed when others were left.

The suggestion that stolen generations children were better off is untrue where they were placed in situations of deprivation, neglect and abuse. People who were removed gave evidence to the Inquiry of their mistreatment ranging from inadequate food and clothing, to abuse. Almost a quarter of children fostered or adopted reported being physically abused.

**Why is the word 'sorry' important as part of the apology?**
The word 'sorry' holds special meaning in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander culture. In many Aboriginal communities, sorry is an adapted English word used to describe the rituals surrounding death (Sorry Business). Sorry, in these contexts, is also often used to express empathy or sympathy rather than responsibility.

During the 2007 election campaign, then Opposition Leader Kevin Rudd also recognised the significance of the word sorry: >> //...simply saying that you're sorry is such a powerful symbol. Powerful not because it represents some expiation of guilt. Powerful not because it represents any form of legal requirement. But powerful simply because it restores respect//

Taken from the Dare to Lead Website.

The Apology
I move:

That today we honour the Indigenous peoples of this land, the oldest continuing cultures in human history.

We reflect on their past mistreatment.

We reflect in particular on the mistreatment of those who were Stolen Generations - this blemished chapter in our nation's history.

The time has now come for the nation to turn a new page in Australia's history by righting the wrongs of the past and so moving forward with confidence to the future.

We apologise for the laws and policies of successive Parliaments and governments that have inflicted profound grief, suffering and loss on these our fellow Australians.

We apologise especially for the removal of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children from their families, their communities and their country.

For the pain, suffering and hurt of these Stolen Generations, their descendants and for their families left behind, we say sorry.

To the mothers and the fathers, the brothers and the sisters, for the breaking up of families and communities, we say sorry.

And for the indignity and degradation thus inflicted on a proud people and a proud culture, we say sorry.

We the Parliament of Australia respectfully request that this apology be received in the spirit in which it is offered as part of the healing of the nation.

For the future we take heart; resolving that this new page in the history of our great continent can now be written.

We today take this first step by acknowledging the past and laying claim to a future that embraces all Australians.

A future where this Parliament resolves that the injustices of the past must never, never happen again.

A future where we harness the determination of all Australians, Indigenous and non-Indigenous, to close the gap that lies between us in life expectancy, educational achievement and economic opportunity.

A future where we embrace the possibility of new solutions to enduring problems where old approaches have failed.

A future based on mutual respect, mutual resolve and mutual responsibility.

A future where all Australians, whatever their origins, are truly equal partners, with equal opportunities and with an equal stake in shaping the next chapter in the history of this great country, Australia.

