Sydney - The Australian government yesterday refused to apologise or compensate aborigines of the so-called "stolen generation" in its official response to a damning report into the breaking up of indigenous families throughout much of this century. But the Aboriginal Affairs Minister, Mr John Herron, unveiled a four-year £30 million package to help reunite aborigines who were taken from their parents under the now discredited policies of assimilation.
Senator Herron said while he and the Prime Minister, Mr John Howard, had expressed deep sorrow for the actions of federal and state governments, and churches, until the 1960s there would be no formal apology. "They were legal actions. An apology can only be given by those who were responsible," he said.
The package, which includes 50 counsellors to help bring families together, was the government's response to the Human Rights and Equal Opportunities Commission report of earlier this year. The report revealed some tragic stories of babies being forcibly removed to white homes to give them a chance of improved health and education. There was a mixed response from aboriginal leaders.