13 February 2008
Australian Parliament apologises to ‘Stolen Generations’
The Australian Parliament today unanimously supported a National Apology to the Stolen Generations.
The term ‘Stolen Generation’ refers to a number of Indigenous Australians who, from 1910 until the early 1970’s, were forcibly removed from their families as children and made wards of the state. Many of these children were subsequently mistreated in the care of foster families and group homes.
The apology extends to all Indigenous Australians who were mistreated and were affected by the consequences of these past policies. The apology is a sincere acknowledgement of a wrong done, and the right thing to do to build a bridge of understanding and respect with Indigenous Australia.
The national apology has both important symbolic value and is a vital healing message for those who suffered, and still suffer, as a result of forcible removal.
As the Prime Minister said today, ‘There is a further reason for an apology as well: it is that reconciliation is in fact an expression of a core value of our nation—and that value is a fair go for all. There is a deep and abiding belief in the Australian community that, for the stolen generations, there was no fair go at all. There is a pretty basic Aussie belief that says it is time to put right this most outrageous of wrongs.’
The Government’s focus is now very much on the future and on closing the 17 year gap in life expectancy between Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians, and children in particular.
The Government has set key targets for its Indigenous policies:
• closing the gap in life expectancy within a generation;
• halving the gap in mortality rates for Indigenous children under five within a decade; and
• halving the gap in reading, writing and numeracy achievements for Indigenous children within a decade.
A bipartisan policy commission led by the Prime Minister and the Leader of the Opposition was agreed today to address Indigenous disadvantage, commencing with an effective housing strategy for remote communities over the next five years. The Commission will also work on constitutional recognition of the First Australians.
Text of the Apology to the Stolen Generations as delivered by Prime Minister Kevin Rudd at 9am (AEDT), Wednesday 13 February 2008
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 national history.
The time has now come for the nation to turn a new page, 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.