The Australian Government has announced plans to formally apologise to members of the Stolen Generation on 13 February 2008, a move that has been welcomed by many around the country.
Australian Jesuit Assistant for Ministry Among Indigenous Peoples, Father Pat Mullins, says the apology is a good start, but is not an end in itself.
‘One Western Sydney Indigenous person said to me today that they were nervous about this if it is only an apology to the stolen generations, rather than an apology to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people whose land was taken', said Fr Mullins. ‘This statement doesn't mean that all that has happened in the past is now to be disregarded.'
A formal apology was a key recommendation from the Inquiry into the Separation of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Children from their Families in the Bringing Them Home report. While the government failed to follow this recommendation up until now, the idea of a formal apology has received widespread public support among both Indigenous and non-indigenous people.
Christian missionaries played a role in removing children from their communities. The Catholic Church issued an apology in 1998 for its part in what happened, and has been a leading voice in calls for the government to respond in similar fashion. Many of its documents and statements of the issue can be found here.
Chairperson of the National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Catholic Council Elsie Heiss has welcomed the government's apology as a step in the right direction.
'The National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Catholic Council sees a formal apology, from the Rudd government, to the Stolen Generations, as a step in the right direction towards healing and reconciliation', she said.
Fr Maurie Heading, a member of the Jesuits' Indigenous Ministry based in the Northern Territory, says it's important that the government take time to ensure the statement is a true gesture of reconciliation. He said he was worried about the process of putting the statement together, and whether Indigenous leaders would be consulted in how the statement will be made.
‘The timing of a statement is important, and should be subject to getting it right first', said Fr Heading. ‘The event is potentially significant. It would be truly sad if it was carried out subject to trivial considerations such as "getting it done quickly".'
What happens after the statement is just as important as the statement itself, according to Fr Heading.
‘Saying sorry without some demonstrable action is hollow and will lose a lot of people while keeping happy those who are opposed to even saying sorry', said Fr Heading. ‘Talk the talk and walk the walk.'
Father Heading urged people around the Province to lend their prayers to those involved in the process.
‘This is too important not to pray about', he said.
More information
The Australian Jesuit Province has just launched a new website, Jesuits and Indigenous Ministry (http://www.jim.org.au/). The website provides an overview of indigenous issues, particularly for those seeking a Christian perspective.
More about this issue can be found on the Reconciliation Australia website including some FAQs on the Stolen Generations and what an apology will mean to indigenous and non-indigenous Australians. Reconciliation Australia is also collecting donations to enable members of the stolen generations to be in Canberra at the time of the apology.
In today's Eureka Street, Fr Frank Brennan SJ provides his response to the proposed apology, saying that now is the moment for political leadership.