Judith Troeth (Victoria, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

I also rise to support the apology. Today is a very important day in the life of this parliament and this country. There is no doubt that much of the past policy was undertaken partly in the name of improving the lives of children—supposedly in material ways of measuring happiness. Children were removed from their families with the thought that they could have what were seen as better living conditions and better education with the hope of better eventual employment. But there was no thought given to the family providing an essential underpinning to an individual’s emotional life, and that is what we are recognising today, amongst other things.

Over time there is no doubt that both sides of government have attempted to provide practical forms of reconciliation through health, housing, education and employment initiatives. This has been done to the extent that the former government last year spent $4 billion on Indigenous initiatives. Yet many of the indicators which would signal an improvement in those areas have changed very little, such as life expectancy, infant mortality, progress through primary and secondary school, and sustainable employment. Saying sorry will not change these conditions in the short term. Yet, by acknowledging the emotional scarring that previous policy has caused, I hope we are creating a true feeling of partnership to go forward and start to improve living standards in every way. By ‘living’ I do not just mean physical conditions but also anticipating and being able to aspire to a physical and emotional standard of living which is due to all Australians.

As a parent, I can only begin to understand what it would feel like to have one child taken from the family, let alone multiple removals, as so many of these cases seem to be. It is no wonder that so many of those parents spent the rest of their often short lives wondering what had become of their children. They were never to know.

Many of these issues have come together in the expressions of regret by various state governments. I was very pleased last June when former Prime Minister John Howard and former minister Mal Brough announced what is now known as the Northern Territory intervention. I am well aware that not everyone agrees with every aspect of that initiative. I hope the new Rudd government carries on the practical aspects of this reform. We must act now, in concert with state and territory governments, to ensure that conditions improve. There have been many expressions of bipartisanship at the national government level for some time, especially yesterday and today, and I applaud the acceptance of this declaration by the leader of my party, Dr Brendan Nelson. Let us go on with this so that the succeeding generations can note this declaration at the start of this new parliament as the start of a new era and new partnerships.