Ministerial Statement

PAST ADOPTION PRACTICES

The Hon. J.W. WEATHERILL (Cheltenham—Premier, Minister for State Development) (14:08): I seek leave to make a ministerial statement.

Leave granted.

The Hon. J.W. WEATHERILL: On 15 November 2010 the Australian Senate asked the Community Affairs Reference Committee to inquire into the role the commonwealth government may have had with regard to former forced adoption practices and policies. On 29 February 2012, the committee tabled its report, which is entitled 'The commonwealth contribution to former forced adoption policies and practices'.

Although this is a commonwealth report, members will be aware that adoption laws are the responsibility of state and territory governments. This report, therefore, has direct relevance for South Australian families and our community as a whole. The report provides a comprehensive overview of adoption practices in Australia during the period from the 1950s to the mid-1980s. The committee made many recommendations, including that state and territory governments which administered adoptions should issue formal statements of apologies to those affected by forced adoptions. Some adoptions were conducted within the state welfare department, as well as in state hospitals, such as the Queen Victoria Hospital. We also know that many adoptions occurred with the involvement of churches and non-government agencies.

It is estimated that in South Australia there were a total of 17,000 children adopted between 1950 and 1980. It is not clear how many of those adoptions during this period may have involved coercion or forced removal of a child. What is clear is that many families were deeply affected by these past practices, and, as the Senate report recommends, an apology should be given for any impact that these past practices may have had on their lives.

Families need recognition of the fact that in cases where mothers felt pressure to relinquish children, they have spent decades dealing with the impact, as have their relinquished children. An apology should be made for these reasons, and I hereby advise the house that it is my intention to deliver an apology on behalf of the South Australian government and our community on Wednesday 13 June this year.

The task ahead of us now is understanding what form that apology should take to ensure that it is sincere for both the birth mothers and fathers, children and extended families. In formulating this apology, I have asked the Minister for Education and Child Development to engage with community groups and the people most affected by these past practices. I am committed to ensuring that this apology makes a significant contribution to those who have endured this suffering.

I call on all members of parliament to support this significant occasion to recognise and apologise for past adoption practices.

Honourable members: Hear, hear!