My socio-political topic of interest is: "The Stolen Generation." My argument is in regards to the debate of whether or not the Australian government should be made to pay financial compensation to the Aboriginal people and the Torres State Islanders. My stand on this issue is a definite and resounding YES! I will endeavor to explain the valid reasons why I believe the Australian government should pay compensation as a form of reparation for their atrocious crime committed against Australia's own indigenous people.
The Stolen Generation - historical background information and facts:
The Stolen Generation - historical background information and facts:
"The Stolen Generation" refers to Aboriginal children from several generations 1883 - 1969 who were forcibly removed from their own families. It is estimated that tens of thousands of children were removed from their homes (the exact figure is unknown because some of the records were intentionally destroyed, some were conveniently lost and other institutions claimed to not have kept records). Some of the children were placed into foster care with white families, some were institutionalized and others were sent off to missions run by various churches. The children were not only removed from their mothers and families but were often separated from their siblings. Government authorities preferred to target the 'half-caste' children as it was believed they were more easily able to be assimilated into white society. These children were then often subjected to physical and sexual abuse. They were forbidden to use their native language and were never taught anything traditional and therefore lost their cultural identity. As the children grew older, they were often sent off to work in domestics or as laborers.
The Apology:
On 13th February 2008, the Australian then Prime Minister the Hon. Kevin Rudd made a public announcement. It was an apology on behalf of the government addressed to the Aboriginal people for the stolen generations. Although it was seen as a genuine apology, it was not enough as a means of reparation towards the humiliation, degradation and suffering Aboriginal people endured and to which they are still being affected by, to this very day. However, the apology was monumental for the Aboriginal people, by that, I mean they were being recognized and validated as a people, as an indigenous race and fellow Australians. More importantly, the public apology was an admission of guilt! The apology was an important step towards the healing process for all Aboriginal people. It meant that the government finally stepped up to the plate and took responsibility for their past actions which caused incredible pain and suffering and irrevocable damage. Below is an official government video of the apology in it's entirety. It is worth listening to as the then Prime Minister the Hon. Kevin Rudd seems to make a sincere concerted effort to deliver the apology in his address to the nation.
Retrieved from you tube website 7th May, 2013.
Why the Australian government should pay compensation:
They have made the apology. The apology in itself is an admission of guilt on the part of the government. It is an admission of wrong doing and in a court of law, an apology would not be enough for a serious crime committed against said victim/s. An apology would be acknowledged and seen as the first step in showing that the perpetrator of a crime was remorseful. However, there would need to be some kind of reparation, usually in monetary terms.
The former Prime Minister the Hon. Kevin Rudd during part of his speech, admitted himself; that the apology is inadequate. He also said that people needed to imagine how they would feel if what had happened to the stolen generation, happened to them.
The former Prime Minister the Hon. Kevin Rudd during part of his speech, admitted himself; that the apology is inadequate. He also said that people needed to imagine how they would feel if what had happened to the stolen generation, happened to them.
During the apology, the former Prime Minister the Hon. Kevin Rudd spoke of several of the atrocities that were inflicted upon Aboriginal people by past governments. During his speech, he relayed the story of an elderly Aboriginal woman in her 80's, who had spoken to him in great length about her life, she had been a member of the stolen generation. She told him about the day the welfare men had turned up with an Aboriginal stock man, who rode a horse and cracked his whip. His job was to hunt the children down as the families had tried to hide them. The children ran screaming to their mothers but were rounded up and forced into in a truck as if they were cattle. Later on, these children were made to line up in groups and then depending upon which line they stood in, were told they then belonged to some particular religious order such as Methodist, Presbyterian and so on. The children then had to endure another separation once more, from their own brothers, sisters and cousins. The elderly lady who had retold her life story to the then Prime Minister the Hon. Kevin Rudd, stated that she never saw her mother ever again. Then at the age of sixteen, she found out from her brother that their mother had passed away, a broken woman who had fretted for her children, the remaining years of her life.
The Hon. Kevin Rudd had also spoken out about some of the more sinister motives certain members of past political parties had in regards to dealing with Aboriginal people and what they had planned on their agenda and of which they'd been quite outspoken about their views; the eradication of the 'black' race in Australia. Though the irony is that the 'black' race are Australia's indigenous race and Australia has always been their homeland!
The Hon. Kevin Rudd had also spoken out about some of the more sinister motives certain members of past political parties had in regards to dealing with Aboriginal people and what they had planned on their agenda and of which they'd been quite outspoken about their views; the eradication of the 'black' race in Australia. Though the irony is that the 'black' race are Australia's indigenous race and Australia has always been their homeland!
Aboriginal people who were members of the stolen generation were literally torn apart from their families and their communities. Several generations were affected. They were traumatized by the sheer brutality of having their lives torn asunder. They suffered and still suffer to this day with numerous ongoing problems throughout their lives in regards to their mental, emotional, physical and spiritual well being; depression, mental health issues, alcoholism, low self-esteem and suicide.
The Hon. Kevin Rudd also spoke about inequality between Aborigines and fellow Australians in terms of health, education, employment. life expectancy and opportunities in life. I believe a compensation payout would go a long way in helping improve their lives significantly and provide them with a better standard of living, a better quality of life, more opportunities in all aspects of their lives. It would be a hand up not a hand out.
There has been a suggested compensation amount talked about by people who believe the stolen generation should be compensated - 500.000 per claimant. This may seem a large amount in the eyes of some people, especially those who object to the government paying compensation and who objected to the government making the apology. However, when you read through the historical facts and individual victim's accounts of everything they were forced to endure, there is absolutely no price tag that could ever erase what was done to these people, no price tag that could magically undo the sickening and abhorrent things, the stolen generation suffered and were left stigmatized by.
The Hon. Kevin Rudd also spoke about inequality between Aborigines and fellow Australians in terms of health, education, employment. life expectancy and opportunities in life. I believe a compensation payout would go a long way in helping improve their lives significantly and provide them with a better standard of living, a better quality of life, more opportunities in all aspects of their lives. It would be a hand up not a hand out.
There has been a suggested compensation amount talked about by people who believe the stolen generation should be compensated - 500.000 per claimant. This may seem a large amount in the eyes of some people, especially those who object to the government paying compensation and who objected to the government making the apology. However, when you read through the historical facts and individual victim's accounts of everything they were forced to endure, there is absolutely no price tag that could ever erase what was done to these people, no price tag that could magically undo the sickening and abhorrent things, the stolen generation suffered and were left stigmatized by.
My conclusion is YES! They should be compensated by the Australian government. The money would go towards improving their lives in all aspects; housing conditions, educational opportunities, improved health and well being, employment opportunities and so on. The money would also help to ensure that they and future generations would have a fighting chance to attain the best possible outcomes for their people. The compensation would go a long way in helping to heal the nation as a whole. Aboriginal people can once again rise up to be the proud race they once were and ultimately feel that they have been validated. After all, they were the original sole guardians of their homeland, Australia.
"Deliberate breach of Article 55(c) of the Charter of the United Nations 1945 “universal respect for, and observance, of human rights and fundamental freedoms for all without distinction as to race, s-x, language or religion” (Crikey, 2008)
The following are statements by Aboriginal people:
"I've asked my granny if she thought she was rescued? She replied, "I didn't need rescuing from my mother's love."Che Cockatoo-Collins
Just number 33.""We were each handed a pair of pajamas with a number. Mr Borland the manager, had given us earlier printed on the pocket, and a shirt and pair of shorts also. I was number 33. Not Bill. Not even Simon.
Bill Simon, taken away aged 10
"I grew up feeling alone, a black girl in a white world, and I resented them for trying to make me white but they couldn't wash away thousands of years of dreaming."
Aunty Rhonda Collard
A member of the Stolen Generation
A Guide to Australia’s
Stolen Generations. (n.d.). Retrieved from:
http://www.parliament.nsw.gov.au/Prod/parlment/hansart.nsf/V3Key/LA19970618005
http://stolengenerationstestimonies.com/index.php/about_stolen_generations.html
http://www.abc.net.au/btn/story/s2219619.htm
http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,998067,00.html
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stolen_Generations
Faris, P. (2008, February 13). Aboriginals must be compensated. Here’s how. Retrieved from
Stolen Generations
Fact Sheet. (2007, July 28). Retrieved from
Australian Bureau of Statistics. (2011, February 17). The Health and Welfare of Australia's Aboriginal and Torres Strait
Islander Peoples.
Australian Human Rights Commission. (1994). Bringing them Home, Chapter 3. Retrieved
from
http://www.parliament.nsw.gov.au/Prod/parlment/hansart.nsf/V3Key/LA19970618005
http://stolengenerationstestimonies.com/index.php/about_stolen_generations.html
http://www.abc.net.au/btn/story/s2219619.htm
http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,998067,00.html
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stolen_Generations
