Sorry Day
It was a day of symbolic gestures, both small and large. Outside Parliament House, it started to unfold with the unfurling of a flag 鈥 armfuls of them in fact. The scarlet, black and gold of the Aboriginal flag, and the green, blue and white of its Torres Strait Islander equivalent. Drawn from nature, the colours speak of the ancient occupancy of this land.
On the flag poles in the forecourt, they were hoisted alongside the national colours, themselves a compilation of symbols - with its Union Flag, the Southern Cross, the southern hemisphere鈥檚 most brilliant constellation and Commonwealth Star, which represents the federation of colonies. In the forging of an identity - and in the search for recognition - emblems clearly carry weight.
Then, in the pale early morning light, members of Stolen Generations started to converge on parliament, drawn to Canberra by the promise of a simple word 鈥 a word that no Australian prime minister has ever publicly uttered in respect of their past injustices.
Inside the chamber of the House of Representatives, its public galleries packed, the business at hand started with the cold grammar of parliamentary protocol. 鈥楳otion offering an apology to Australia鈥檚 indigenous peoples,鈥 announced the clerk.
Soon it was replaced with heartfelt words of recognition, respect and reconciliation. In delivering his apology, PM Kevin Rudd was typically precise, measured and deliberate. He is not a great public speaker. He truly is a politician for whom governing is prose rather than poetry. But this was not about towering oratory, nor flights of rhetorical fancy. Of the 361-word apology, only one really mattered: Sorry. And to the delight and rapture of members of Stolen Generations looking down from galleries, he repeated it thrice.
Clearly this was a long-awaited moment of enormous cathartic power. As he said those momentous words, I was stood on the lawns outside, just up the hill from a huge gathering of people who were watching the speech on giant screens. With each sorry came a loud and happy cheer.
As for the scenes in parliament, where鈥檚 the Prime Minister鈥檚 speech was met with the most joyous of standing ovations, I cannot wait to see how Hansard records that moment.
I would love to hear what you think. But let me tell you first about the reaction from Sally Pierce, a member of the Stolen Generations who had travelled up from Tasmania. For years she has worn a black t-shirt emblazoned with the word "Sorry". After Kevin Rudd had finished speaking, she replaced it with a t-shirt emblazoned with the word "Thanks".
I hope you got a chance to read of , I hope, too, that dear old Frank Byrne feels a little differently about the apology. He was separated from his mother at age of five, then learnt that she had been committed to a mental asylum in Perth having suffered a breakdown after he was taken away. As yet, I have been unable to reach him. But last week Frank told me that the apology would mean nothing, because it would never bring back his mum, and because a five-letter word would never heal the pain of 65 years of separation.
I鈥檒l long remember Frank鈥檚 story, along with the comments of Pat Turner, the former head of the former head of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Commission.
People in this country know more about the plight of the third world than people in their own country, she told me.
She may have a point. Covering this story, I have been amazed at how few people knew the full extent of the Stolen Generations' story, and the thinking which lay behind the policy. True, many were removed for benevolent motives - taken, rescued even, from abusive homes. But for many more, it was a painful experience.
And I wonder how many people can quote that terrible inventory of statistics which speaks of the breach between black and white Australia.
An indigenous baby born on "Sorry Day" still has a life expectancy 17 years shorter than a white baby. The overall death for Aboriginal people is three times higher. The unemployment rate is also three times higher.
Perhaps this was a day of awakening as well as atonement. I know that I've learnt a lot more over the past few weeks, and its been a fairly jolting experience.
Nobody should ever mistake a sorry for a solution. But one thing surely everyone in Australia can agree on is the need to find ways of giving indigenous Australians a more abundant and equitable life.
Today Canberra has dawned crisp and bright. Hopefully, that's another symbol.
I'm 
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Nick,
Andrew Bolt of Melbourne radio constantly rants "There is no such thing as a stolen generation. Name three stolen indigenous people." You haven't found too much difficulty in finding them.
Perhaps you could share the names with him.
Nick,
Andrew Bolt of Melbourne radio constantly rants "There is no such thing as a stolen generation. Name three stolen indigenous people." You haven't found too much difficulty in finding them.
Perhaps you could share the names with him.
Nick, yesterday made me a very proud Australian because all of Kevin Rudd's speech hit the right note. It may not have been poetry but it was elegant and eloquent. His descriptions of the abuse suffered by members of the stolen generation were moving and the apology was heart felt. What is more is that the speech has been almost universal praised-so it was just right!
Nick, yesterday made me a very proud Australian because all of Kevin Rudd's speech hit the right note. It may not have been poetry but it was elegant and eloquent. His descriptions of the abuse suffered by members of the stolen generation were moving and the apology was heart felt. What is more is that the speech has been almost universal praised-so it was just right!
Nick, thanks for your commentaries on and around Sorry Day. Through them we can but glipse the enormity of this momentous event.
Above all, many of us can get inside something like the feeling it holds, something like how our own parents would be if their children were taken away from them at an early age. What would they do? What would they say? That has something to do with why sorry is such a great step forward.
I have to say I for one can't get my head around how anyone can deny the past or slight the apology. Just the way of the world, yes?
Who pays attention to anything Andrew Bolt says anyway?
Yesterday's events will never please, or appease everyone, but its a start. Some of the politicians (and certain columnists) should do what you did Nick - go and talk to the people involved and find out what really happened.
Nick love your blog but you've done your professional reputation no favours with this one.
There are many people (dare I say the majority of Australians) both aboriginal and not who are very cynical about this "sorry" for very valid reasons. You haven't investigated this side of the story at all?
Nick love your blog but you've done your professional reputation no favours with this one.
There are many people (dare I say the majority of Australians) both aboriginal and not who are very cynical about this "sorry" for very valid reasons. You haven't investigated this side of the story at all?
Love your blog Nick but you've done your journalistic reputation no favours with this one.
There are many Australians (dare I say a majority?) both Aboriginal and not, who are very cynical about this "sorry". You haven't investigated the other side of the story at all?
Nick,
Listening to your reports, someone unfamiliar with the complex history of this issue would be forgiven for thinking that one group of Australians are indifferent to the depressing welfare of Aborigines, whilst another are nobly outraged. The impression given is that Kevin Rudd simply cares more about Aboriginal suffering than John Howard, and that the lingering breach between black and white Australia can be explained by Howard鈥檚 intransigence.
The truth is that all sides in our national politics have tried for thirty years to bring these disparities to an end. The honest political and philosophical disagreement lies in how this might be done. Billions were spent on programs that seem only to have exacerbated the problem, leaving cultures of dependency and worklessness. The encouragement of cultural separatism (embodied in the failed ATSIC) is now discredited.
Living in the UK, I was very moved to hear about the belated apology for removing children because they were Aboriginal before the 1970s. But this optimism is tempered by the knowledge that now, paralysed by 鈥榳hite guilt鈥, we are tolerating practises and abuses in remote indigenous communities that would never be tolerated anywhere else. I can see why it is tempting鈥攅ven reassuring鈥攖o think that the state of these communities is down to white neglect, that these cultures of abuse are 鈥榗ries for help鈥. The same lame excuses are given for the 鈥榟onour killings鈥, forced marriages and other abuses of parts of the Muslim community in the UK.
The debate is not between caring or not caring about indigenous suffering, but rather between continuing the failed policies of multiculturalism and separatism or adopting a new emphasis on integration and empowerment. I wish your reporting would reflect some of these subtleties. You might consult the Bennelong Society for some dissenting, though nuanced views on this. Thanks.
Nick,
Listening to your reports, someone unfamiliar with the complex history of this issue would be forgiven for thinking that one group of Australians are indifferent to the depressing welfare of Aborigines, whilst another are nobly outraged. The impression given is that Kevin Rudd simply cares more about Aboriginal suffering than John Howard, and that the lingering breach between black and white Australia can be explained by Howard鈥檚 intransigence.
The truth is that all sides in our national politics have tried for thirty years to bring these disparities to an end. The honest political and philosophical disagreement lies in how this might be done. Billions were spent on programs that seem only to have exacerbated the problem, leaving cultures of dependency and worklessness. The encouragement of cultural separatism (embodied in the failed ATSIC) is now discredited.
Living in the UK, I was very moved to hear about the belated apology for removing children because they were Aboriginal before the 1970s. But this optimism is tempered by the knowledge that now, paralysed by 鈥榳hite guilt鈥, we are tolerating practises and abuses in remote indigenous communities that would never be tolerated anywhere else. I can see why it is tempting鈥 even reassuring鈥 to think that the state of these communities is down to white neglect, that these cultures of abuse are 鈥榗ries for help鈥. The same lame excuses are given for the 鈥榟onour killings鈥, forced marriages and other abuses of parts of the Muslim community in the UK.
The debate is not between caring or not caring about indigenous suffering, but rather between continuing the failed policies of multiculturalism and separatism or adopting a new emphasis on integration and empowerment. I wish your reporting would reflect some of these subtleties. You might consult the Bennelong Society for some dissenting, though nuanced views on this. Thanks.
Nick,
Listening to your reports, someone unfamiliar with the complex history of this issue would be forgiven for thinking that one group of Australians are indifferent to the depressing welfare of Aborigines, whilst another are nobly outraged. The impression given is that Kevin Rudd simply cares more about Aboriginal suffering than John Howard, and that the lingering breach between black and white Australia can be explained by Howard鈥檚 intransigence.
The truth is that all sides in our national politics have tried for thirty years to bring these disparities to an end. The honest political and philosophical disagreement lies in how this might be done. Billions were spent on programs that seem only to have exacerbated the problem, leaving cultures of dependency and worklessness. The encouragement of cultural separatism (embodied in the failed ATSIC) is now discredited.
Living in the UK, I was very moved to hear about the belated apology for removing children before the 1970s. But this optimism is tempered by the knowledge that now, paralysed by 鈥榳hite guilt鈥, we are tolerating practises and abuses in remote indigenous communities that would never be tolerated anywhere else. I can see why it is tempting鈥 even reassuring鈥 to think that the state of these communities is down to white neglect, that these cultures of abuse are 鈥榗ries for help鈥. The same lame excuses are given for the 鈥榟onour killings鈥, forced marriages and other abuses of parts of the Muslim community in the UK.
The debate is not between caring or not caring about indigenous suffering, but rather between continuing the failed policies of multiculturalism and separatism or adopting a new emphasis on integration and empowerment. I wish your reporting would reflect some of these subtleties. You might consult the Bennelong Society for some dissenting, though nuanced views on this. Thanks.
Wow Australians have really shown themselves to be quite mean and narrow minded on this subject. Reading the responses on Aussie Newspaper blogs today, it's like a tirade from the 1950s.
Quite embarrassing really.
As usual poor reporting and not reporitng the facts. does Nick go into what the Aboriginal communites acutally get?
What benefits being up to 1/8 aborignals are entitled to? Is this made evident to anyone? No... These entitlements are not given to white Austalians..
It would be nice to see Nick report truthfull and completely for a change instead of being so anti Australian and persisting in a racist view of Australians.
Hey,, Nick old mate,,not one mention about our previous prime minister John Howard,staying away,come on,,,this is the bloke that could end up being honoured with a piece of womens clothing(the garter)from your Queen...Fair-dinkum this sucks..
Just like the United States and other countries, Australia is a diverse nation of diverse opinions.
For the very government institutions that committed unspeakable acts against innocent families out of misguided "good intentions" to apologise was absolutely the right thing to do.
I support the government's apology, and it signifies a turning point in race relations in Australia.
England Fan - I'm dismayed both by what has been written by some, and by what was written by you. Surely Wednesday鈥檚 events point to a noble and conciliatory spirit at work within this country?
Australians are a great people - and we all have something in common - an extraordinary piece of geography. It's the great leveler. If we recognise that we are all subject to one another, and that we have a responsibility to ensure our collective well being from uneven places of extreme wealth and extreme poverty, we can truly turn a page as Mr Rudd has asked.
It won't be easy, it'll be hard - but we must do it.
It's as simple as that.
Just like the United States and other countries, Australia is a diverse nation of diverse opinions.
For the very government institutions that committed unspeakable acts against innocent families out of misguided "good intentions" to apologise was absolutely the right thing to do.
I support the government's apology, and it signifies a turning point in race relations in Australia.
England Fan - I'm dismayed both by what has been written by some, and by what was written by you. Surely Wednesday鈥檚 events point to a noble and conciliatory spirit at work within this country?
Australians are a great people - and we all have something in common - an extraordinary piece of geography. It's the great leveler. If we recognise that we are all subject to one another, and that we have a responsibility to ensure our collective well being from uneven places of extreme wealth and extreme poverty, we can truly turn a page as Mr Rudd has asked.
It won't be easy, it'll be hard - but we must do it.
It's as simple as that.
As a newcomer to Australia I freely admit that I lack the historical context and apparent nuances surrounding this issue. However, I was moved by the gesture, the words that have never been uttered before and can virtually guarantee that this apology would never happen in my homeland. I only hope it inspires positive action to address the core problems and in doing so acts as an inspiration for other societies.
At the opposite end
Sweden traditionally doesn鈥檛 have a population which can be distinguished by colour. Yet, at least twice as many children have been taken away from their parents in Sweden as in Australia (in a population half the size).
The figures are not entirely reliable as they are public guesstimates and fluctuate in a remarkable manner. According to public reports a quarter of the girls and an eight of the boys may have been sexually abused (鈥渉e kept the axe beside the bed鈥) and a about third will have serious mental problems when grown up.
Abuse seems to be the order of the day and speaking to these people is an 鈥渆ye-opener鈥. One learns about people having their faces smashed in to radiators, being flogged with steel wires, being forced to eat their pets and about the dead 鈥 鈥渢hey rolled them up in carpets and carried them away鈥.
It is still going on 鈥 at the same rate. The rational being that 鈥渨e have no reason to believe that it is not better now鈥. The historically inclined finds that argument somewhat repetitious, as it has been used since the 1920ies. Yet, across the street from where I live, a boy had his education banged in to his head just the other year. Now we do have people of colour, who according the personnel at orphanages, are easy to keep track of, because they stand out so well against the snow.
All in all, it is the kind of thing representatives, of a country with the reputation that Sweden has, are somewhat hesitant to bring up at international conferences on welfare, for instance.
A few weeks ago Maria Larsson, the Minister of Public Health, had the following to say on the issue of apology:
鈥淲e have to have the entire picture before we can say anything. It will be interesting to see how the differences look geographically in the various counties. It the kind of thing we have to look at first.鈥
No, the minister is not a geographer, she is a Christian.
Australians have every reason to be very, very proud of its Prime Minister. He seems to be at the opposite end of it.
What PM Rudd has done deserves international recognition; a Nobel will be a good reflection of his act. But the second dimension of this apology/ sorry is, how has australia received it ( Channel 7 survey showed approx.70% were against ) and how will the indegenous australians now be integrated to the main fabric of the society. Australia, unlike UK or US or the rest of europe still lives in the colonial past and will take a few years more to reconcile with its past, present and the future.
It has indeed been moving to witness the Australian government's apology. Not sure how much weight it has without a thought-through compensation policy.
Saw this the other day. Very clever way of changing attitudes to immigrants in Oz.
Thoughts?
Nice article, but some of the comments...
Darren, when you rant about entitlements, you're on morally thin ice, don't you think? Did you ever consider how much money the surviving indigenous people are morally entitled to for the last 250 years of "history"? If a group of peopled moven onto YOUR street tomorrow, declared all locals (including you) as non-human and proceeded to evict your and your neighbours, kill and rape an indiscriminate number of people, steal half your children and "settle down" in your street and your homes with your car, fridge, pool and bbq, just how much compensation do you think YOU would be demanding for your raped wife and your stolen daughter?
Its good that PM Kevin Rudd has finally said sorry. What about the pacific islanders who were "black birded" to work in the sugarcane plantations mostly in Queensland? Their decendants are still in Australia today.
I don't think there has been a formal apology to South Sea Islanders but they were recognised by both the Commonwealth and Queensland Governments in the 1990s as disadvantaged by their history and to receive assistance. There is a memorial in the main street of Childers.
I'm curious about the comment of Australia lagging behind 'the UK. US and rest of Europe' #16 given this is the second apology to Aboriginal Australia by an Australian PM (after Paul Keating's in 1992).
The usual benchmark of dealing with colonial horrors in the UK US and Europe is slavery. As I recall the last attempt for a unified European apology was at the UN conference in Durban in 2001. It collapsed into a statement of 'regret' and that the trade was not illegal at the time, hence no apology. Wasn't that the result? I think individual states in the US - eg Virginia and North Carolina - have recently apologised but no Federal apology as yet
I thought Rudd's apology went well,
don't know if you have seen this with raymattja and kev
Nick - and what about the UK? we have never apologised to aborigines but we have to the Irish and others.
Who started this? Who's the ultimate responsible party? We are and the UK continues to work against indigenous interests internationally. Here is the UK government's attitude:
"The use of the term 'indigenous peoples'... cannot be construed as having any implications to rights under international law".
Ask your colleagues about the Uk establishment's attitude, Nick, and you may be shocked.
Regarding the Rudd apology, it was carefully couched. Compensation is off-the-table as is any talk of genocide - they won't even discuss it but it clearly was cultural genocide and that needs to be understood.
I think this is a late, partial move in the right direction and Labor has bad form with actually sticking up for aborigines - Rudd himself has bad form and certainly needs to do much more before he's Nobel material. He could start by bringing the remote aboriginal communities up to the same standard of basic services which their white neighbours enjoy - I have seen for myself what this means in practice and also seen many Australians preferring ignorance about their fellow citizens situation.
When I lived there the ABC showed Frontier, the first real attempt to document the war of occupation. Despite a star-studded narration it got terrible ratings and I very much noted that even my 'right-on' friends didn't watch it. The massacre sites remain unmarked and unknown and to my mind this says everything about Australian attitudes.
Confronting the past is hard and the apology is one baby-step only down the road which Australia must take.
#25
I can't see an apology being offered by the British Government. There have been numerous occasions since the modern Aboriginal movement began here in 1958 with FCAATSI in the lead up to the 1967 referendum. At the time of the Bicentennial in 1988 was one, or in 1992 when Paul Keating apologised at Redfern, and now after Rudd's apology.
Do people in the UK know or have any interest in what happened on January 26th 1788 when the First Fleet entered Sydney Harbour? That the First Fleet was a convict fleet under the escort of 2 armed Royal Navy warships, with Royal Marines and a large arsenal of military weapons on board. That there were no settlers, nor instructions to form a treaty. That in a convict society it was the military which controlled the frontier for the first 50 years until enough settlers arrived to take over. It's no surprise that Aboriginal people see it as an invasion.
It takes community debate and a knowledge of history before a Government apologises and unless that takes place a UK apology is unlikely
Getting back, to your comment about 'the terrible inventory of statistics,' Nick. I think the health stats in particular decreased life span and infant mortality are known as they are frequently quoted. I think there is a perception that the problems are difficult and intractable.