Text of PM Rudd's 'sorry' address

[Violet_Crumble]

Today we honour the Indigenous peoples of this land, the oldest continuing cultures in human history.

We reflect on their past mistreatment.

We reflect in particular on the mistreatment of those who were stolen generations - this blemished chapter in our nation's history.

The time has now come for the nation to turn a new page in Australia's history by righting the wrongs of the past and so moving forward with confidence to the future.

We apologise for the laws and policies of successive Parliaments and governments that have inflicted profound grief, suffering and loss on these our fellow Australians.

We apologise especially for the removal of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children from their families, their communities and their country.

For the pain, suffering and hurt of these stolen generations, their descendants and for their families left behind, we say sorry.

To the mothers and the fathers, the brothers and the sisters, for the breaking up of families and communities, we say sorry.

And for the indignity and degradation thus inflicted on a proud people and a proud culture, we say sorry.

We the Parliament of Australia respectfully request that this apology be received in the spirit in which it is offered as part of the healing of the nation.

For the future we take heart; resolving that this new page in the history of our great continent can now be written.

We today take this first step by acknowledging the past and laying claim to a future that embraces all Australians.

A future where this Parliament resolves that the injustices of the past must never, never happen again.

A future where we harness the determination of all Australians, Indigenous and non-Indigenous, to close the gap that lies between us in life expectancy, educational achievement and economic opportunity.

A future where we embrace the possibility of new solutions to enduring problems where old approaches have failed.

A future based on mutual respect, mutual resolve and mutual responsibility.

A future where all Australians, whatever their origins, are truly equal partners, with equal opportunities and with an equal stake in shaping the next chapter in the history of this great country, Australia.

http://www.theage.com.au/news/national/bfull-textb/2008/02/12/1202760291188.html

[Matilda]

1. I watched it on television this morning.

Decided getting to work on time was less important than watching history being made.

It's only the first step, but it was right, and very moving.

[biggles1]

2. Spot on Matilda...

there were moist eyes in this household too.

[Andrushka]

3. I caught only first few minutes

before I had to catch the train.

Wanker at work (yes, he's a Liberal voter, youngish fella, too) was making fun of it. You have to wonder sometimes if the racism will ever really go away.

[Violet_Crumble]

4. It has brought the racist wankers out of the woodwork...

I spotted a post over at The Guardian's Comment is Free where one of them was insisting that there's no such thing as a stolen generation and it was merely children being removed from parents who were sexually abusing them etc. The twit had totally ignored the fact that various state governments have acknowledged that indigenous children were forcibly removed from their parents for the sole purpose of attempting to assimilate them into white families, nor seemed aware of the existance of the 'Bringing Them Home' report...

Most of us at work watched it on telly, though I work less than five minutes from Parliament House and can see it from my desk with the panoramic window view. I felt a bit guilty about not going to Parliament House to join the gathering there, but it was hard enough getting to work this morning through the extra traffic, so I decided not to venture out on the roads again...

[Esra Star]

5. Eventually it will. Civilisation is a long slow process.

Unfortunately the human race is not capable of moving very fast.
We all saw what happened to Gough when he tried to move too fast.(for the plebs)
I watched it all on television and put the aboriginal flag in my front window.
I think Kevin Rudd understands media to a very great degree.
If this event was his opening monologue, I can hardly wait for the rest of the show.
"We're not in Kansas anymore Toto!"

[Matilda]

6. John Howard missed two great opportunities to go down in the history books.

One was his failure to apologise to the Stolen Generations, and the other was in not declaring
Australia to be a Republic. Kevin Rudd has now done the first, and I hope in his second term he'll
begin the process for the second, and those two things alone will ensure him his place in the record
books.

John Howard will instead be remembered as only the second prime minister in our history to lose his
own seat at an election.

[Esra Star]

7. I've tallied up all of John Howards achievements....

Credit where credit's due.
He did get some of the most advanced gun laws operating.
The buyback meant that most of the guns were handed in. The ones that were
not handed were buried by their owners. At least there when they feel like
blowing their old lady's head off, getting the gun will take time. By then
they will have cooled off.
Secondly and penultimately he built the mythical north south railway to Darwin.
Even though it was Halliburton, at least the line's in.

And lastly he makes Kevin Rudd look like a statesman.
I'm sure this was unintentional.

Other than that, nuthin'

Cheers

[Djinn]

8. the gun laws were a total sop

the number of gun crimes in Australia has always been very low and it hasn't changed since the buy back which didn't remove "most" guns and the ones that weren't handed in are still kept at home by owners (legally in a locked box not buried)

The stereotype of the domestic snapping has always been FAR more likely to happen with a knife or a pair of fists.

The gun buy back and the change in laws (pretty much just limiting handguns) had zero effect.

[Djinn]

9. watched it

at the ACTU with a bunch of fellow cynical union hard arses, teary eyes all round...until Nelson got up and redefined innapropriate.

Happily I heard today that he now has the lowest approval rating of an Opposition leader ever.