For a full century preceding 1969, under the premise of various state and federal parliamentary acts and church missions, Aboriginal and Torres Straight Islander children in Australia were routinely and forcibly removed from their families. The intention varied from policy aimed at flushing out the aboriginal genes to those which were branded as so-called ‘protection’ of aboriginal people. Australia Day, which signifies the founding of the nation under the Commonwealth, is coined Invasion Day by aboriginal people who I know - and they have good reason.

The truth is that for a bulk of Australia’s history, little just thought was given to the dignity and rights of these ancient races of people. There was little appreciation of their relationship to a land which was not real estate, but an entity which coursed through their veins, inseparable from their spirituality and culture. Little just thought also was given to the devastating effects of forcibly uprooting a human being from their family and culture, especially when the culture is so deeply rooted in family.

To this day the plight of the aboriginal people remains desperate, their cause largely unchampioned. Life expectancy of aboriginal people is 20 years lower than other Australians. So many communities are rife with alcoholism, domestic violence and various forms of abuse, many of which have only recently been brought to light. Though the solution to such complex problems with more complex aetiology is never simple, it can be argued that Australia has been decades behind other colonised Commonwealth nations such as Canada and New Zealand, which have arguably acted with more foresight and wisdom in working to ‘right the wrongs’. Though the blame game is a hopeless enterprise, mutual responsibility must be lifted.

A new sense of mutual ownership and responsibility needs to be fostered. In New Zealand, general pride in the country’s Maori heritage is evident in its current identity, such as the rugby team’s opening Haka, a traditional Maori warrior dance to psyche out the opposition. In Australia we don’t have a symbol of our aboriginal history in our national psyche.

In recent years however, with the inception of Aboriginal land rights, the telling of stories of the stolen generations in films such as Rabbitproof Fence, and the tabling of a parliamentary report (1997) on the forced removal of children from their families, the stage has been sent for the nation to search for greater attempts at reconciliation and a fresh beginning. Since the ‘Bringing Them Home’ report of 1997, many Australians have chosen to commemorate ‘Sorry Day’ annually in acknowledgment of the pain suffered by Aboriginal and Torres Straight Islander people.

This year, for the very first time, Australian Parliament was ushered not just by the pomp and ceremony of our British heritage, but by a traditional welcome ceremony. The government was welcomed to Country. Matilda House Williams, an aboriginal spokesperson, made the official welcome: “I would like to welcome you here today to the land of my ancestors. The land of the Ngambri people. Moruri yarbi darna ronda. (phonetic)”

In a moving statement she reminisced the opening of Parliament in 1927: “Among the crowds stood an old Aboriginal man, dressed in his old suit, barefoot and dogs at his side. His name was Billy Clements. On seeing Mr Clements, a policeman asked him to leave because he wasn’t dressed appropriately for the occasion. Mr Clements did not want to be moved on after all this was the land of all our ancestors. I stand here before you in this same great institution of ceremonial dress and barefoot - honoured and welcome.”

On the following day, on 13 February 2008 in the first sitting of Parliament, Prime Minister Kevin Rudd put forward a motion where the long anticipated word, purposely avoided by politicians for so long, was spoken: Sorry.

Aboriginal people and members of the stolen generations traveled from rural areas to witness this historic occasion. Many hugged and wept as they heard these long awaited words, via live telecast in public places around the country. Many came proudly in stead of their parents and grandparents.

Some believed that sorry was called for, and that it signified compassion and acknowledgment of a shameful and dark period in a proud nation’s history - one that was simply swept under the rug for too long by those privileged to have not born the blunt end of the stick. Some believed that one generation should not be held accountable for, or apologise for, the acts of previous generations. Others believed that no wrong was committed.

The argument is now over. Prime Minister Kevin Rudd called the Stolen Generations “a great stain in our nation’s soul” and said “sorry” not once, not twice, but several times. It was said with elegance, respect, compassion, and a lucid frankness not clouded by politics. I commend the statement to the Neocrats as one which history will not forget. Watch it here..

You can also see some of the response to the speech, and the motion being passed, here.

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