Over the weekend the nation marked thirteen years since former prime minister Kevin Rudd’s formal apology to First Nations people, in particular the Stolen Generations.
The much-needed apology to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people for the forced removals of children from their families by state and federal government agencies was well-received at the time however many believe not much has changed since and that child protection services are repeating the mistakes of the past.
Speaking with Radio Goolari, the CEO of the Kimberley Stolen Generation Aboriginal Corporation Tania Bin Bakar said the apology had a huge impact on the Stolen Generations of the region but said unfortunately not much has happened since then.
“We continue to advocate on behalf of the Stolen Generations, mostly from the Kimberley but also on a regional, state and national level.”
“You can’t just forget about it, it happened and the impact of the removal policies that happened back in the early days, it wasn’t the fault of anybody that exists today, but it goes back to that truth-telling.”
“The truth has to be told so that people can have a really good understanding about the impacts of those removal policies which continue to affect Stolen Generations people and their descendants.”
“Before we can move forward as a country we have to stop, look at the history and start telling the truth about the horrific things that happened to Aboriginal people during colonisation.”
“Until that happens, I think we’re always going to have that disparity that happens between Indigenous and non-Indigenous people in Australia.”
