Timeline
A timeline of reparations for Stolen Generations survivors
Below is a timeline of some significant events relating to reparations for Stolen Generations survivors. It is not a complete list. For more detailed timelines, see:
- The Australian Human Rights Commission’s Stolen Generations timeline
- The Healing Foundation’s Timeline of Trauma and Healing in Australia
We are grateful to the Human Rights Commission and the Healing Foundation for the information for this timeline.
1994
More than 600 Stolen Generations survivors gather at the Going Home Conference in Darwin to discuss common goals. The Going Home Conference was instrumental in pushing the Australian Government to set up a National Inquiry into the Separation of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Children from their Families (the National Inquiry).
1995
The Attorney-General Michael Lavarch asks the Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission (the Commission) to set up the National Inquiry.
1997
The Commission presents the landmark ‘Bringing them Home’ report to Parliament. ‘Bringing them Home’ traces the history and consequences of removal for the Stolen Generations, and makes 54 recommendations to support healing and reconciliation.
All states and territories, except the Northern Territory and Queensland, apologise to the Stolen Generations.
1998
The first National Sorry Day is held on 26 May 1998.
2001
The Northern Territory apologises to the Stolen Generations.
2006
Tasmania sets up the first Stolen Generations compensation scheme.
2008
Prime Minister Kevin Rudd apologises to Australia’s Indigenous peoples on behalf of the Australian Government. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice Commissioner Tom Calma responds with a call to ‘let the healing begin’.
2016
The South Australian Stolen Generations Reparations Scheme begins.
2017
The Healing Foundation marks the 20th anniversary of ‘Bringing them Home’ with ‘Bringing Them Home 20 years on: an action plan for healing’. The action plan seeks a ‘reset’ in light of government inaction on the majority of the ‘Bringing them Home’ recommendations.
The New South Wales Stolen Generations Reparations Scheme begins.
The Uluru Statement from the Heart calls for a First Nations Voice in the Constitution, and a Makarrata Commission to supervise agreement-making and truth-telling.
2022
The Territories Stolen Generations Redress Scheme begins.
The Victorian Stolen Generations Reparations Package begins.