Stolen generation [sic] members dismiss Howard's apology
Source: AAP | Published: Thursday August 26 2:47:49 PM
Members of the stolen generation today reacted angrily to Prime Minister
John Howard's expression of regret in
federal parliament, saying it did not go far enough.
They said Mr Howard's statement may benefit Australia's profile but
would not help the Aboriginal people who were
taken from their families as children, in accordance with past
government policy.
They doubted the sincerity of Mr Howard's statement because the
Commonwealth was fighting a compensation case
by those children in the Federal court here.
They estimated the government had spent $6 million on the case.
'How can they be serious about regret while they pour millions of
dollars into fighting our compensation claim tooth
and nail?' said Central Australian Stolen Generations Aboriginal
Corporation (CASGAC) spokesman Harold Furber.
'How can they be serious about atonement if they will not consider some
form of compensation to the individuals
whose lives were devastated.
'We have grave concerns that the deal being done in Canberra will look
good for the nation but will not benefit a
single member of the stolen generation.'
Central Land Council director Tracker Tilmouth accused Mr Howard of
trying to weasel out of saying sorry and said
expressing regret was not good enough.
'He must say sorry, not some play on words or legal squirming phrases
designed to get him off the hook,' Mr Tilmouth
said.
'We of the stolen generation find this a deplorable lack of compassion
by the Australian government and should be
noted as such.
Mr Tilmouth also took a swipe at Aboriginal Democrat Senator Aiden
Ridgeway for accepting Mr Howard's form of
apology.
Senator Ridgeway's maiden speech to parliament last night called on the
government to express deep and sincere
regret for the hurt and trauma suffered by indigenous Australians.
'Some Aboriginal leaders and members of parliament are too willing to
sign off on the hard issues because some white
fella said g'day to them," Mr Tilmouth said.
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