Page 23 - Week 01 - Tuesday, 13 February 2018
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In 2018 the community can be assured that this government is committed to providing all our police, security and emergency services agencies with the funding and resources needed now and into the future to ensure that Canberra remains one of the safest places to live, work and visit. I present the following paper:
Portfolio priorities for 2018—Ministerial statement, 13 February 2018.
I move:
That the Assembly take note of the paper.
Question resolved in the affirmative.
National apology to the stolen generations—10-year anniversary
Ministerial statement
MS STEPHEN-SMITH (Kurrajong—Minister for Community Services and Social Inclusion, Minister for Disability, Children and Youth, Minister for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Affairs, Minister for Multicultural Affairs and Minister for Workplace Safety and Industrial Relations) (11.06): It is a privilege for me to stand here today on the 10th anniversary of the national apology to the stolen generations and acknowledge the traditional custodians of the land we are meeting on. I pay my respects to elders past and present, to our community’s current and emerging leaders and to any Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people who are here today. I acknowledge and respect their continuing culture, the oldest living culture on earth, as well as the ongoing contribution of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people to the life of this city and this region.
Today I also wish to pay my respects to the family and friends of Steven Freeman, acknowledging that today, Steven’s birthday, will be particularly difficult for them. Like too many Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander families, they have lost someone they love far too young and in traumatic circumstances.
On this 10th anniversary of the national apology I reflect on the resilience and strength of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people and their profound connection to family, country, community, culture and language which has endured despite enormous challenges resulting from the intergenerational impact of colonisation and discrimination.
On 13 February 2008 former Prime Minister Kevin Rudd delivered an apology on behalf of the Australian government to the stolen generations, acknowledging and expressing sorrow for the pain and trauma caused by past Australian government laws and policies that forcibly removed children from their families, communities, land and culture solely on the basis of their race.
The national apology was a significant moment in Australia’s history, as this injustice committed against Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people was officially and
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