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Apology to Aborigines

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Published Date: 13 February 2008
THE Australian government yesterday made a formal apology for the past wrongs inflicted on the indigenous Aboriginal population.
Kevin Rudd, the prime minister, apologised in parliament in the capital, Canberra, for laws and policies of successive governments that inflicted "profound grief, suffering and loss".

Mr Rudd also singled out the "Stolen Generations" of thousands of children who were forcibly removed from their families.

"Today, we begin with one small step to set right the wrongs of the past," Mr Rudd said afterwards.





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  • Last Updated: 13 February 2008 12:53 AM
  • Source: The Scotsman
  • Location: Edinburgh
 
1

,

13/02/2008 04:56:21
Comment Removed By Administrator
Reason:
2

John M,

Melbourne. Australia 13/02/2008 05:09:34
Yes, the Australian government has apologised for removing indigenous children who were neglected and abused (including raped in their early teens by family members). The government has said that this removal will never happen again.

No-one, not the government not the all-hold-hands-and-say-Ommm media have been able to find any Aboriginal child that was removed solely because it was Aboriginal.

The whole thing is symbolism without evidence by the "smail and wave" twits that now form the government.
3

John M,

Melbourne, Australia 13/02/2008 07:07:35
Sorry ... that's "smile and wave" (not "smail and wave" - sounds American doesn't it?))
4

Paddi,

13/02/2008 10:13:47
#1

why start there? lest ask, NAY, DEMAND that the Italians apologise and pay reperations for the murder, annexation, rape and pillage of these islands. We could also throw in the Jews who nailed Christ to the cross. Oh and lets ask the Mongolians for an apology on behalf of Genghis Khan.

The Australian apology to the aboriginals is fine as many of the people "taken" under the AUSTRALIAN government are still alive.

lets stop this pc pandering, liberal hand wringing of apologising for things which happened before anybody was alive.

and if you knew anything about history you would know that much of the British Empire was built by Scots.
5

truthsleuth,

13/02/2008 11:43:14
#4 Paddi

You got it in one.
Yes the Aborinal kids were treated badly as far as todays standards go but at the time they were getting a 'better deal' than they would have had.

I am sure the Aboriginals will make some monetary claim for compensation but then they could if they wanted have a far better (?) life than they would have had if they had stayed in the bush. So will they repay the Immigrants (whites) for this.

Come to think of it I wonder if in 10 years time when the Muslim (Immigrants) (etc) have taken over this country our forefathers strived to build, will we be able to claim compensation from them?

As a Scot I look fiorward to claiming from the Sassenachs reparations for thir activities in Scotland. But then I suppose the Current English would claim from the Normans and the Germans from the French and so on.
This compensation malarchy was started by Jewish survivors from the WWII who were 'robbed' of their art treasures by the Germans.Holocaust notwithstanding What about all those British and American (etc) soldiers who were killed/injured in the war claiming from peoples liberated in WWII.

Quite honestly the situation beggars belief.
6

ozjock2008,

13/02/2008 13:34:05
I think you're all missing the point. This is a symbolic gesture, recognising a failed policy that has caused great suffering. The forced removal was done with the intention of removing the children from a life of poverty and coercing a wetsern lifestyle on a generation (although obviously without a vote and the same rights as the rest of the population (myself included)). The reality of the policy is that it has fractured communities and inflicted mental suffering on a generation...in turn causing more alcoholism, abuse etc.

The concept of apology is not new either...it has happened in South Africa, Chile, Germany etc in modern times.

Finally, #5, no compensation has been mentioned. However, if the muslim population of oz does inflict genocide etc on the wasp population, I'm sure you'll get a few bucks (and I'm sure you'll shout louder for it than the aboriginal population does too), so worry you not.
7

Paddi,

13/02/2008 16:32:13
#6 the only one who has missed the point is you. We are all in consensus about then need for the apology as this has happened in peoples life time. What we disagree on is the need to apologise for something that happened 100’s of years ago when no one here was alive and the world was a different place. You can't put 2008 morals onto 1708's problems.
8

d.j.,

13/02/2008 17:21:07
It is quite obvious that the lot of you have been part of the oppressor and have not been on the side where anything of major significance has occurred to their people.

Providing an appology is a very empty gesture especially if the deeds done still benefit the oppressors as is the case in Australia, Canada, USA, and many other places including the lairds who dispossed the people in the Highlands and Islands during The Clearances.
There is no way that I will ever forgive those who still live in style and luxury or benefit from what was done whether they mouth an apology or not. What is needed are high levels of reparations from those descendants who still benefit and central government for what was done.

All I can say is that the Aboriginal people in Australia or Hawai'i etc are stupid and I do not believe they are, if an empty gesture such as saying sorry will do.
9

we the people,

13/02/2008 17:47:57
paddi yer a fool. This Did happen in our lifetimes - up until the early eighties - were the 'standards of the time' so different that attempting to extinguish a race (in cultural, physical and affective terms) was deemed acceptable? the aus govt is clearly doing this to forestall compensation claims for which native australians are well overdue.
10

Biker,

Ayr 13/02/2008 18:49:36
#5 Truthsleuth. Indeed the aboriginies had it bad. Hunted as vermin and used for target practice. Even by todays standatd and the standards of the time, they had it very very bad.
11

Conan,

Chile 13/02/2008 19:05:08
If Australians are sincerely sorry for the past and present they inflicted on the aborigines, wouldn't it be reasonable for the invaders to simply leave and go back to where they came from. For those invaders who were born there, they could simply give up all of their wealth to the aboriginies, then leave. Seems fair.
12

John M,

Melbourne, Australia 13/02/2008 20:12:59
Biker of Ayr (#10), have you any evidence to support support your claim "Hunted as vermin and used for target practice." ? If you can produce evidence of one instance then please show that the practice was widespread and not an isolated case akin to mass murder.

If you can't, then we should consider your claim as baseless.
13

thatscottishwoman@FH.,

freehootsman.com 14/02/2008 22:01:30
This is ridiculous
14

Biker,

Ayr 18/02/2008 09:59:20
John , Melbourne

It was indeed the case that during the 19th century that the Aboriginies were treated as vermin and hunted by the high and mighty, with , we are told theintention of removing them from the stolen land. I would have thought that this was obvious but then again, history is written from the perspective of the victor. I shall attempt to get this information and send you the link.

 

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