Chris Evans (WA, Australian Labor Party, Leader of the Government in the Senate) Share this | Hansard source

by leave—I move:

That the Senate support the apology given on this day by the Prime Minister, on behalf of the nation, to the Forgotten Australians and former Child Migrants in the following terms:We come together today to deal with an ugly chapter in our nation’s history.And we come together today to offer our nation’s apology.To say to you, the Forgotten Australians, and those who were sent to our shores as children without your consent, that we are sorry.Sorry – that as children you were taken from your families and placed in institutions where so often you were abused.Sorry – for the physical suffering, the emotional starvation and the cold absence of love, of tenderness, of care.Sorry – for the tragedy of childhoods lost – childhoods spent instead in austere and authoritarian places, where names were replaced by numbers, spontaneous play by regimented routine, the joy of learning by the repetitive drudgery of menial work.Sorry – for all these injustices to you as children, who were placed in our care.As a nation, we must now reflect on those who did not receive proper care.We look back with shame that many of you were left cold, hungry and alone and with nowhere to hide and nobody to whom to turn.We look back with shame that many of these little ones who were entrusted to institutions and foster homes – instead, were abused physically, humiliated cruelly and violated sexually.We look back with shame at how those with power were allowed to abuse those who had none.And how then, as if this was not injury enough, you were left ill-prepared for life outside – left to fend for yourselves; often unable to read or write; to struggle alone with no friends and no family.For these failures to offer proper care to the powerless, the voiceless and the most vulnerable, we say sorry.We reflect too today on the families who were ripped apart, simply because they had fallen on hard times.Hard times brought about by illness, by death and by poverty.Some simply left destitute when fathers, damaged by war, could no longer cope.Again we say sorry for the extended families you never knew.We acknowledge the particular pain of children shipped to Australia as child migrants - robbed of your families, robbed of your homeland, regarded not as innocent children but regarded instead as a source of child labour.To those of you who were told you were orphans, brought here without your parents’ knowledge or consent, we acknowledge the lies you were told, the lies told to your mothers and fathers, and the pain these lies have caused for a lifetime.To those of you separated on the dockside from your brothers and sisters; taken alone and unprotected to the most remote parts of a foreign land – we acknowledge today the laws of our nation failed you.And for this we are deeply sorry.We think also today of all the families of these Forgotten Australians and former child migrants who are still grieving, families who were never reunited, families who were never reconciled, families who were lost to one another forever.We reflect too on the burden that is still carried by your own children, your grandchildren, your husbands, your wives, your partners and your friends – and we thank them for the faith, the love and the depth of commitment that has helped see you through the valley of tears that was not of your making.And we reflect with you as well, in sad remembrance, on those who simply could not cope and who took their own lives in absolute despair.We recognise the pain you have suffered.Pain so personal.Pain so profoundly disabling.So, let us therefore, together, as a nation, allow this apology to begin healing this pain.Healing the pain felt by so many of the half a million of our fellow Australians and those who as children were in our care.And let us also resolve this day, that this national apology becomes a turning point in our nation’s story.A turning point for shattered lives.A turning point for Governments at all levels and of every political colour and hue, to do all in our power to never let this happen again.For the protection of children is the sacred duty of us all.

This motion is supported by the Leader of the Opposition, Mr Turnbull, and, I am sure, by all senators.

I acknowledge first of all the forgotten Australians and former child migrants who are in the parliament today, who have come from all around Australia to hear the Prime Minister and the opposition leader offer the apology on behalf of the nation. I remind senators that on 13 February last year the Prime Minister rose in the other chamber to deliver the national apology to Australia’s Indigenous people. At that time he said:

… there comes a time in the history of nations when their peoples must become fully reconciled to their past if they are to go forward with confidence to embrace their future. Our nation, Australia, has reached such a time.

Today we seek to acknowledge and reconcile with another dark chapter in Australia’s past so that the nation can once again move forward. Today the nation acknowledges and apologises for the pain and devastation caused by the actions of governments and institutions against the forgotten Australians and former child migrants—children placed in care. In speaking this morning the Prime Minister outlined the abuse, deprivation and neglect that befell children placed in orphanages, homes and institutions where they were supposed to be protected, nurtured and educated.

Many senators are familiar with the terrible wrongs and injustices carried out. They have been documented through the course of three separate Senate inquiries. Firstly, there was the report Lost innocents: righting the record, from the committee chaired by former Senator Rosemary Crowley. She rang me today to apologise for not being able to be here; she was keenly interested in the apology. Then there was the report Forgotten Australians: a report on Australians who experienced institutional or out-of-home care as children in 2004, from the committee chaired by Senator Jan McLucas. The most recent inquiry, chaired by Senator Rachel Siewert, produced the Lost innocents and forgotten Australians revisited which was tabled this year. These reports pursued an issue that is really important to many Australian citizens. They provide a record of the damage done to so many and give voice to those who are suffering. I think it does the Senate great credit that as a result of those inquiries we have got to this position today—a formal national apology.

I will not attempt to name all the senators involved but I do acknowledge the work of the chairs: former Senator Crowley, Senator McLucas and Senator Siewert. I know Senators Humphries, Moore and others have been highly engaged in this issue, and it is to their great credit. Of course, I would also like to mention the work of former Senator Andrew Murray, himself a victim, if you like, of these processes. He has been a tireless advocate on behalf of former child migrants and forgotten Australians and he used his time in the Senate to agitate and advocate on their behalf. He has been involved in chairing the consultations that assisted in developing the apology today. It is very good to see him back in the parliament. The work he did is a great credit to him.

To our shame as a nation, we failed to provide the essentials of a good life for the half a million children placed in the care of state governments and charitable and religious institutions in Australia—half a million children who were deprived of their childhoods, many of whom were also torn from their families. These children were denied love, affection and protection from those charged with their care and instead were neglected, exploited and abused.

As Minister for Immigration and Citizenship I feel a special concern for the 7,000 former child migrants who were shipped to Australia from the United Kingdom and Malta. These children, who were predominantly placed in residential institutions, were the victims of a deliberate and tragically flawed government policy to help populate Australia. Even those children who escaped mistreatment and abuse in these institutions still suffered from the loss of identity and sense of alienation that comes from being torn away from one’s family, friends and homeland and shipped to the other side of the world alone. Many of these children were sent to Australia without their parents’ consent and were oftentimes lied to and told that their parents had died or did not want them any more.

These forgotten Australians and former child migrants are now middle-aged, but the past continues to have profound and far-reaching effects on their adult lives. Beyond the devastating impacts of such deprivation and abuse for the individuals, we also see that the families have come to be burdened and haunted by their past as well. That is why today we also acknowledge their husbands, wives, partners and children for the love, support and commitment they provide. We also remember today those people who, unable to cope with the pain and horror of these experiences, took their own lives.

The apology delivered by the Prime Minister today and this motion are first steps in the healing process. Today the nation, through its highest institution, the Australian parliament, says, ‘We are sorry’. The apology signifies that this chapter of Australia’s history and the lives of the people affected will be forgotten no longer. It also signifies that the journey of recognition and healing will continue and that the government will continue to offer understanding and support for those in need.

On a practical level, 600 counselling services are being made available under the Family Support Program, offering trained counsellors to help individuals and families to heal further and have strong and healthy relationships. To support former child migrants, the government will continue to provide funding for counselling services, family tracing support and other assistance, as it has since 1990. This assistance occurs through the Child Migrants Trust, an independent organisation for former child migrants, their parents and relatives. The trust is working with about 1,000 people to rediscover their origins and deal with the legacy of their childhood experiences.

The Australian government is also working with those who support the forgotten Australians. We are funding the Alliance for Forgotten Australians and the Care Leavers of Australia Network to continue support for care leavers. We must also ensure that the abuses of the past do not happen again. In conjunction with the states and territories, the government has developed the National Framework for Protecting Australia’s Children. It includes strong national standards for out-of-home care, so that the care is of a high quality and children are safe and well cared for.

I acknowledge that these are small steps forward, but they are positive steps which demonstrate the Australian government’s and the Australian parliament’s commitment to offer practical and meaningful support to those who seek it. Today marks a turning point in Australia’s history. From this day forward, I hope that all governments and institutions that have in the past neglected their responsibility for children in their care will act on their obligations in practical and meaningful ways. One of the most important things we can do now is to ensure that this chapter in our history is never repeated.

Today we recognise and applaud the courage of former child migrants and forgotten Australians in speaking out. We admire the courage of people who have shared their individual stories and, in some cases, have been further traumatised by revisiting the past. Through today’s apology we show our respect for all people affected, our support for further recognition for the terrible wrongs inflicted and our hope to assist the process of healing. I commend the motion to the Senate.