The Canberra Times May 23, 2000 Letters: Can Peter Howson really see nothing wrong? NOW PETER HOWSON tells us (CT, May 18, p.9) that Lowitja O'Donoghue was not "stolen" because, he claims, her father placed her in a mission. He has altered his claim slightly since his letter to the Age on April 23, in which he said, "Lowitja's father initiated her removal to further her education." I presume he did not know then that Lowitja O'Donoghue was removed at the age of two. Does he know that she did not see her mother again for the next 30 years? I have no idea whether Peter Howson's claim is true. But Ted Egan, the singer/songwriter, recently challenged the argument that the Government removals of children were "almost all with parental consent". In earlier years he worked for the Native Affairs Branch in the Northern Territory. He said on ABC radio, "It was the policy to encourage women to allow their children to be taken away. It was persuasive counselling, on a very one-sided basis, and it invariably worked. I acknowledge the policy was dead wrong, and I was the first to sign the Sorry Books." The Sorry Books are not about guilt. In his work in Aboriginal Affairs, I am sure Peter Howson did his best as he and his peers saw it. But now, looking back, can he truly not see anything wrong with a policy that separated an infant from her mother for 30 years? JOHN BOND Hughes ------------------------------------------------------ RecOzNet2 has a page @ http://www.green.net.au/recoznet2 and is archived at http://www.mail-archive.com/ To unsubscribe from this list, mail [EMAIL PROTECTED], and in the body of the message, include the words: unsubscribe announce or click here mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]?Body=unsubscribe%20announce This posting is provided to the individual members of this group without permission from the copyright owner for purposes of criticism, comment, scholarship and research under the "fair use" provisions of the Federal copyright laws and it may not be distributed further without permission of the copyright owner, except for "fair use." RecOzNet2 is archived for members @ http://www.mail-archive.com/recoznet2%40paradigm4.com.au/
