OIC marks 15th anniversary of the National Apology to the Stolen Generations
On Monday 13 February, representatives from OIC attended an event to mark the 15th anniversary of the National Apology to the Stolen Generations, who suffered trauma because of past government policies of forced child removal.
Queensland Information Commissioner, Rachael Rangihaeata, said: “It is important that, as a nation, we commemorate and acknowledge the wrongs of the past, while reflecting on the work that still needs to be done to address the impacts of unresolved trauma.”
Representatives from OIC attended the event along with staff from The Healing Foundation and Link-Up Queensland – two key partners who participated in last year’s Solomon Lecture which was delivered by Mr Ian Hamm, Chair of the Historical Records Taskforce at The Healing Foundation.
Mr Hamm’s 2022 lecture ‘The importance of truth through Aboriginal eyes’ focused on truth telling and its implications for Australia as a nation, what benefits it brings us all and also the importance of knowing your own story (through the eyes of the stolen children).
The OIC is continuing to work with other Information and Privacy Commissioners, State Archivists and Births, Deaths and Marriages Registrars around the country in a commitment to The Healing Foundation’s principles for improving access to Stolen Generations records for survivors and their families.
The OIC is also working with The Healing Foundation and Link-Up Queensland and other key partners to help government agency officers, who deal with requests for documents, in applying the principles to improve access.
In addition, there are also plans to hold a forum in the coming months to further progress this initiative.
