Australian Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Women's Parallel ...

• that victims of child abuse are often ostracised by the community• a past history of problematic interactions with powerful governmentauthorities including police and child protection authorities (history of stolengenerations);• fear of possible removal of the child from the community (history of childrennever returning);• the perpetrator going to jail and implications of this in terms of communityrepercussions (memories of deaths in custody). 157Given these problems it is difficult to accurately estimate the extent of the abuseexperienced by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children and develop effectiveprograms.Over-representation of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children in state‘care’Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children are significantly over-represented in thecare and protection systems of all jurisdictions. In 1997 the Bringing Them Homeinquiry found that the proportion of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children whowere removed and placed in care was seven times higher than the proportion of non-Indigenous children. 158Unfortunately, since that time the rate has increased rather than decreased. In 2007-08,Aboriginal and Torres Straight Islander children were nine times more likely to be in outof-homecare than non-Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children. In all jurisdictions,there were higher rates of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children in out-of-homecare than other children. 159 The ongoing removal of Aboriginal and Torres StraitIslander children perpetuates a cycle that spans generations of removing children fromtheir families and communities.Our women remain gravely concerned at the ongoing failure by governments to engagein real dialogue with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women to formulate practicaland positive strategies to protect children at risk. Of the submissions provided to the'National Inquiry into the Separation of Aboriginal and Torres Straight Islander Childrenfrom their Families', not one Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander organisation saw thecurrent statutory interventions by child welfare department to be an effective responseto their communities’ child protection needs. 160 There is a strong argument that thecurrent mainstream child protection models are not applicable to Aboriginal and TorresStrait Islander cultures. 161Our women have reported that there are often not enough appropriate Aboriginal andTorres Strait Islander carers for children who are placed in care. Children are thereforeplaced elsewhere, removed from their communities and culture, which can bedetrimental and damaging to their development and identity. Women have also reportedthat even where appropriate Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander carers are found,often not enough support is provided to those carers. Torres Strait Islander women157 Little Children are Sacred Report, above n 19, 177.158 Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission, above n 7, 372.159 Child Protection Australia, above n 155, 63.160 160 Janet Stanley, Adam Tomison, and Julian Pocock, “Child Abuse and Neglect in IndigenousAustralian Communities - Issues Paper No 19,” (Melbourne: Australian Institute of Family Studies:National Child Protection Clearinghouse, 2003), 23-24.161 C Cunneen and T Libesman, A Review of International Models for Indigenous Child Protection,(2002).70