Carol Brown (Tasmania, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Parliamentary Secretary for Families and Payments) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I move:

That the Senate take note of the document.

I rise to acknowledge the interim report of the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse.

The work of this royal commission could not be harder or more important. When the royal commission was established by the Gillard government in January 2013 it was made clear that they were not only inquiring into crimes of the past but were also making recommendations to ensure that children, the most vulnerable in our community, are better protected in the future.

This report highlights the significant amount of work the commission has undertaken so far and outlines the work that lies ahead. The report states that by 31 May 2014 the commission had held 1,677 private sessions and had received 1,632 written accounts. By 30 June 2014 they had held 13 public hearings, in Adelaide, Brisbane, Canberra, Perth and Sydney. I know that since that time they have held hearings in my home state of Tasmania.

The work of the commissioners and all the staff involved should be commended. But those who deserve the greatest acknowledgement are those who have been abused and who have courageously come forward to share their experiences with the commission. It is important that we hear and know their stories. I would recommend that all those who sit in this place take the time to read the report, particularly some of the stories that are recorded in the second volume. These stories form part of our nation's history, not a proud part but a part it is important we acknowledge. It is important that the stories are heard to help people heal and help us all learn and protect children in the future.

In addition to detailing the extraordinary work of the royal commission to date, this report calls on the government to extend its final reporting date by two years to 15 December 2017. The report said:

The Royal Commission is presently required to complete its work by the end of 2015. Having regard to the private sessions, public hearings, research and consultation that must be undertaken to complete the tasks required by the Letters Patent, the Commissioners are satisfied that more time is essential. The Royal Commission has asked the Government to extend the final reporting date to 15 December 2017 and fund the Royal Commission so that it has the resources necessary to complete its work by that time.

We know that the funding for the royal commission has already been cut in this year's budget, but now the government can take steps to redeem itself on this issue and to accept the request of the royal commission. This critical work must not remain undone. If the government does not agree to this reporting extension and additional funding, many survivors, particularly those from vulnerable and hard-to-reach groups, will miss out. Their experiences will remain unheard, the opportunity for healing denied and the opportunity for some justice refused. I seek leave to continue my remarks later.

Leave granted.

Anne Urquhart (Tasmania, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I also rise to take note of document 20, volumes 1 and 2 of the interim report of the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse. I thank the commissioners and their staff for their work so far and I deeply thank the courageous survivors who provided evidence to the commission about their experiences. Without their courage, these dark secrets would remain hidden and, as such, our community would not have had this opportunity to learn from these tremendous institutionalised wrongs and to work to ensure that these horrors are never repeated.

Volume 1 summarises the work done so far. As at the end of May, the commissioners had held 1,677 private sessions and received 1,632 written accounts. Over 1,000 people are currently waiting to attend a private session. The website has been viewed by over 233,000 visitors. At the end of June, 13 public hearings had spanned 96 days and heard from 219 witnesses. The commission had completed 21 research projects and started work on 12 more, while over 160 matters had been referred to the police for investigation.

Volume 2 shares 150 personal stories from survivors who shared their experience of abuse with the commission at a private session, including six stories from Tasmanian survivors. I will share one of those stories to the Senate tonight, but all names used are not the real names of people involved. The following is Sharon's story:

Soon after her birth in 1949, Sharon was placed in the care of Shirley, a woman living in country Tasmania. Sharon remembers about 10 different children coming and going in Shirley’s house over the years, and they were all sexually abused by Shirley’s partner, Trevor, and her son, Wayne.

Sharon was abused two to three times per week for around eight years. At the age of 12, she told Shirley about the abuse:

‘She gave me a belting and I thought, “That’s it, I’m going to go to the police. There’d have to be somewhere better than here”. I walked 13 kilometres to the station to tell them, but they wouldn’t listen. They put me in the car and drove me back, and said, “Don’t come here again”.’ I ran away when I was 15 because I was sick of it. I was hungry and I had no clothes. I took some things from the shop and got caught.’

When Sharon appeared in court … someone must have noted she was pregnant, because soon after she was sent to a Catholic girls’ home.… she didn’t receive any information about being pregnant, and wasn’t really aware that she was. One evening, she developed cramps and didn’t go to the evening meal. Her labour started soon after. Sharon said she tried to leave her room, but .. the door was locked … By the time her screams brought attention, she’d given birth to a baby girl. The baby was immediately taken from her, and Sharon was later given conflicting messages as to whether she had survived. A death certificate stated the baby was stillborn, but Sharon said she’d heard the baby cry, and she thought there was a possibility the girl was still alive.

Sharon later married and had two children. She didn’t tell her husband about the baby until the Government apology to the ‘Forgotten Australians’ in 2009. ‘There were so many people there just like me. It was a real eye opener.’ She carried a great sadness that the other children she’d grown up with had found their birth families and she hadn’t. ‘I think that would have helped, to know who I was, or to know something about where I’d come from.’

In 2010, Sharon received $55,000 from the Tasmanian State Government Redress Scheme. She said the payment meant a great deal to her. ‘They believed me, and I’d never been believed before. That was the first time.’

This survivor, Sharon, was failed by the Tasmanian government's foster care system, by the police, by the Catholic church and by everyone she had ever tried to trust while growing up, but she was brave enough to share her story with the commission.

Through the commission's work, our institutions are reforming their practices. The commission must be funded today complete its work to ensure all survivors of child sexual abuse have the opportunity to report their experiences. It is estimated that the commission needs a further $104 million. Considering that Senator Brandis reallocated $4 million from this commission to one of the Liberals' political royal commissions, I urge him to reinstate that $4 million and to find $100 million from within the budget. It is the right thing to do; it is the only thing to do. I seek leave to continue my remarks.

Leave granted; debate adjourned.