Ladies and gentlemen, could I now introduce Mr Tom Calmer, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice Commissioner, nominated by the Stolen Generations Alliance and the National Sorry Day Committee to provide an Indigenous response to the apology. Mr Calmer. Prime Minister the Honourable Kevin Rudd. Opposition Leader Brendan Nelson. Minister for Indigenous Affairs, the Honourable Jenny Macklin.
Former Prime Ministers. Professor Bruce Wilson, representing the late Sir Ronald Wilson. Stolen Generations Patrons, Lois O'Donoghue and Bobby Randall. Chair of the National Sorry Day Committee, Helen Moran.
And Chair of the Stolen Generations Alliance, Christine King. Ministers. members of the Stolen Generations and your families, my Indigenous brothers and sisters, and distinguished guests from around Australia and overseas. May I begin by acknowledging the Ngunnawal peoples, the traditional owners of the land in which we're meeting today, and pay my respects to you and your elders. I've been asked by the National Sorry Day Committee and the Stolen Generation Alliance, the two national bodies who represent the stolen generations and their families, to respond to the parliamentary apology and to briefly talk about the importance of today's event.
I'm deeply honoured to be entrusted with this responsibility and to participate in today's proceedings. I'm particularly honoured to do so in my capacity as the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice Commissioner at the Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission. The inaugural Social Justice Commissioner, Professor Mick Dodson, was the co-commissioner of the National Inquiry along with the late Sir Ronald Wilson, who was president at the time, and that culminated in the Bringing Them Home report. The next Social Justice Commissioner, Dr Bill Jonas, contributed greatly to the understanding of the report and the importance of its meaning. And on the third Social Justice Commissioner.
Today is an historic day. It's today our leaders across the political spectrum have chosen dignity, hope and respect as the guiding principles for the relationship with our First Nations peoples. Through one direct act the Parliament has acknowledged the existence and the impacts of past policies and practices of forcibly removing Indigenous children from their families and by so doing has paid respect to the stolen generations for their suffering and their loss and for their resilience and ultimately for their dignity. Let me tell you what the apology means to me.
For many years my family has been searching in vain to find information about my great-grandmother on my father's side who was taken away at the turn of the 20th century. Recently Linkup in Darwin located some information in the archives. In a document titled, List of Half-Casts in the Northern Territory, dated on 2 December 1899, A government official named George Thompson wrote the following about my great-grandmother.
Her name was May and he wrote, half-caste May is a well-grown girl, is living with her mother in the blacks camp at Woolwonga. Her mother will not part with her. She mixes up a great deal with the Chinaman, she only has a naga on.
My great-grandmother's ordeal was not uncommon and nor was a chilling account. Her mother will not part with her. This is not a black armband issue and it's not an issue of guilt. It never was. It's about belonging.
The introductory words of the 1997 Bringing Them Home report reminds us of this. It reads The past is very much with us today in the continuing devastation of the lives of Indigenous Australians. That devastation cannot be addressed unless the whole community listens with an open heart and mind to the stories of what has happened in the past and, having listened and understood, commits itself to reconciliation. By acknowledging and paying respect, Parliament has now laid the foundations for healing to take place and for a reconciled Australia in which everybody belongs.
For today is not just about the stolen generations, it's about all Australians. Today's actions enables every single one of us to move forward together with joint aspirations and a national story that contains a shared past and a future. It is a matter of great sadness that the experiences of the stolen generations has been used as a source of division amongst the Australian community since the release of the Brigham Home Report. There are many individuals out there who have made their names as stolen generations deniers and rebuffers.
This vitriol has re-traumatised many of the stolen generations. It has cast doubts on the integrity of many individuals and ultimately has denied indigenous peoples basic human dignity and decency. These are not traits associated with the Australian way and nor is it any way to respond to human tragedy. Let us feel proud that we are now facing the difficult and dark experiences from our past in order to move on. Let us also feel proud as a nation that we respect our fellow citizens.
We care for their plight and we offer our hands in friendship so that we may all enjoy the bounty of this great nation. Prime Minister, can I thank you for your leadership on this issue and for the support and compassion of your minister, Jenny Macklin. It is far more difficult... Thank you. It is far more difficult to try and unite people than to divide them.
Your efforts should be praised universally for attempting to create a bridge between the many diverse elements of our society. To the Leader of the Opposition, can I also acknowledge your leadership. It is of great significance that this motion was passed today with bipartisanship support. For too long Indigenous peoples have been used as a political football. More often than not this has promoted fear, misunderstanding, intolerance and inaction.
And it's that inaction that we have to change. And to all parliamentarians I say, let today be a new beginning, not an end point. Last month I facilitated discussions between the Government and Stolen Generations groups about the apology. The overwhelming message from these meetings was that this should be seen as the first step in a partnership.
The Stolen Generations have needs that have yet to be met, mainly due to underfunding of link-ups and other support organisations. There remains a pressing need for specific assistance tailored to the needs of the Stolen to particular circumstances of those forcibly removed from their families. And there are many recommendations of the Bringing Home report that have not been implemented. In fact, there has been little attempt to even consider many of these recommendations at the federal or state level in recent years, or for them to be implemented systemically across all jurisdictions. To the premiers and state and territory government representatives here today, I urge you to join in that partnership to address the unfinished business.
Prime Minister, I mentioned earlier that it's harder to try and unite people than to divide them. And this is because people have hope, and people who do have hope also have expectations. The consultations between your government and the Stolen Generations groups identified a number of elements to build upon from today.
And these include... Committing to a partnership with Stolen Generations groups as well as link-ups and other service providers with ongoing consultation and participation. Committing to a comprehensive government response to the needs of the Stolen Generations as identified in the Bringing Them Home report and thirdly adopting a whole of government approach across all departments and across all governments to achieve this. And I was very heartened to hear that there is bipartisan support for the Commission that you're proposing. And there is hope that today's apology can create the impetus for a renewed partnership between the federal and state and territory governments to fully implement the recommendations of the Bringing Them Home report.
It is timely that the federal government take the leadership role in developing a national process to make this happen. Finally, Can I acknowledge the support of the many millions of non-indigenous Australians who have walked with us on the path to reconciliation and justice. And can I pay tribute to the members of the Stolen Generations for your incredible resilience, stoicism and dignity in the face of untold suffering.
Let your healing begin and let the healing of the nation begin. Thank you.