1 year ago. Canberra ACT, Australia

Australia commits $1 billion as reparation to ‘stolen generation’

Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison has announced one-off payments to Indigenous Australians (Photo: PTI)

Australia’s ruling coalition has announced reparations for Indigenous People
Reparations, including one-off payments, would be made to Indigenous Australians removed from their homes as children
The initiative is part of overhauling the existing ‘Closing the Gap’ policy

Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison announced on Thursday that the federal government will make on-off payments to many Indigenous Australians who were removed from their homes as children, reports AFP.

The Australian federal government’s redressal scheme is part of a AUS $1 billion (US$740 million) plan to reduce the sharp disadvantages faced by indigenous Australians.

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Thousands of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children were taken away from their homes and put in foster care with white families under the official assimilation policies that were active till the 1970s.

Speaking in the parliament of the ‘Stolen Generation’ of Indigenous Australians, Prime Minister Scott Morrison said, “What happened is a shameful chapter in our national story.”

According to the prime minister, $378.6 million would be allocated to redress the “human damage” of the policy, including making one-off payments to its victims.

The redressal policy will apply to Indigenous Australians living in the former Commonwealth territories including the Northern Territory, the Australian Capital Territory and Jervis Bay. Other Australian states have set up their own redressal schemes.

In a statement ahead of the announcement, the minister for Indigenous Australians, Ken Wyatt said the scheme would support healing and was “critical to continue the nation’s reconciliation journey”.

The scheme for survivors removed in the territories would include “a one-off payment in recognition of the harm caused by forced removal”, the minister said adding that “it would also give each survivor the opportunity to tell their story and receive an individual apology”.

The new policy is part of overhauling the Closing the Gap initiative last year after months of negotiation with Aboriginal peak organisations.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison said that the government’s approach was about reconciliation and accountability.

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Federal Labor leader Anthony Albanese said, “The prime minister promises a new approach, but the question is, is this new money, or is this another shiny new announcement from existing funds?”

Albanese is scheduled to address the chamber on Thursday. He will commit to delivering a national process for treaty-making and truth-telling, thereby creating employment opportunities for First Nations people, and funding Indigenous-led programmes for caring for land and water.

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Australia commits $1 billion as reparation to ‘stolen generation’

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