Michael Danby (Melbourne Ports, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Parliamentary Secretary to the Leader of the Opposition) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I am making this statement on behalf of Nicky Davis, who is a survivor of years of child sexual abuse and a spokesperson for SNAP, the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests.

Survivors around Australia are horrified that, despite the heartbreaking stories of abuse being heard for the first time, the Abbott government sees the precious funding that is being used for this royal commission, reversing the years of neglect of previous decades, as a piggy bank to be raided.

Nicky says: 'We are accustomed to betrayal by those in authority, and to those who should help us turning their backs on our suffering. But there is one thing survivors will never accept. We will not, can not, stand by and knowingly allow other children to be exposed to the same danger that stole our future and devastated those around us. And neither should our Government.' She continues, 'By diverting funding from the Child Abuse Royal Commission, the government demonstrates a lack of commitment to child protection.'

Ms Henderson interjecting—

Mrs Griggs interjecting—

These are not my words; these are the words of Nicky Davis, survivor of child sexual abuse. She concludes: 'The Child Abuse Royal Commission is a unique opportunity for Australia to finally put child protection first. But only if it is funded at a level appropriate for the size of the task.' These are the words of a survivor of child sexual abuse.