VIGIL to Object to Adoption Amendment Bill 2013
Rally at Parliamnent House Tomorrow Tuesday 7th May 12 noon
Click here to view Rally details
Failed Bid to change the Victorian Adoption Amendment Bill
http://localtoday.com.au/local-news/69969-Failed-bid-to-change-Vic-adoption-bill.html
Important Announcement
Improved Counselling for Victorians affected by Forced Adoption
I am pleased to advise you that the Victorian Government has today announced details of a $500,000 program to enhance access to counselling for those affected by past adoption practices.
As you are aware, at the time of the Apology for Past Adoption Practices, the Government announced a number of measures to better respond to the needs of those affected by forced adoption. One of these measures was enhanced support for access to specialised counselling and support, including in both rural and metropolitan areas of Victoria.
The counselling initiative announced today includes delivery of the following over the next two years:
· The development and delivery of a competency based training package to build specialist skills for existing (metropolitan and rural/regional) counsellors to better respond to forced adoption issues.
· Management of a panel of qualified counsellors that are appropriately trained and willing to accept referrals to provide forced adoption counselling.
· Development of a website for counsellors (and other professionals) to access related support materials.
· A specialist counsellor to deliver counselling services and a secondary consultation service for other counsellors
· Facilitation of support groups for the adoption community across Victoria.
VANISH, a community based organisation that provides support services for people affected by adoption, has been selected to deliver this workforce development and capacity building package, across Victoria. VANISH will use a combination of in-house and external resources.
The Victorian Government acknowledged last October, the ongoing trauma and pain many people affected by forced adoptions deal with on a daily basis. While what was done cannot now be undone, practical measures such as this counselling package are intended to improve the support available in the community.
If you have any further questions at this time please contact Ms Coleen Clare, CEO VANISH at manager@vanish.org.au or Ms Sue Hildebrand, Department of Human Services, sue.hildebrand@dhs.vic.gov.au
Yours sincerely,
Mary
Mary Wooldridge MP
State Member for Doncaster
Minister for Mental Health
Minister for Community Services
Minister for Disability Services and Reform
2/1020 Doncaster Road
Doncaster East 3109
ph) 9841 5166
VANISH PRESS RELEASE: ADOPTION COMMUNITY WELCOMES NEW FUNDING
Forced Adoptions History Project
On Thursday 21 March 2013, the Australian Government delivered a formal national apology to those affected by forced adoption practices. As part of this formal apology it was announced that the National Archives of Australia has been invited to:
develop a website and exhibition to record the experiences of those affected by forced adoption and increase awareness and understanding of these experiences in the community.
We are very interested to hear from you if you have, in any way, been affected by the practices and policies of forced adoption in Australia. See the link below to provide us with further information. Your comments will assist in developing our projects.
National Forced Adoptions Apology Team.
http://www.naa.gov.au/about-us/partnerships/forced-adoptions.aspx
Article from a Birth Mother
Click here to view the article
VANISH’s Press Release for the National Apology
Press Release 170313 for Federal Apology .docx
Adoption community seeks delay and rethink of adoption legislation
Victorian Adoption Amendment Bill
Vanish welcomes the proposed amendments to the Adoption Act tabled in State parliament on Wednesday 6th March which finally allow parents access to identifying information about their children.
The link to the Bill is
http://www.parliament.vic.gov.au/static/www.legislation.vic.gov.au-bills.html
However, Vanish remains strongly opposed to any contact vetoes being placed by adopted people to prevent any contact.
Click here to see the Vanish statement from Vanish Chair, Leigh Hubbard
Click here to view the Adoption Amendment Bill 2013
Click here to view the Explanatory Memorandum
Click here to view the Second Reading Speech_ Adoption Amendment Bill 2013
Forced Adoptions Apology - Canberra - 21st March 2013
Prime Minister Julia Gillard delivered an apology to victims of Past Forced Adoption Policies and Practices in Canberra on the 21st March 2013.
You can hear her speech in Parliament on the link below
Or you may view a transcript of the speech here
Further information may be found on the Adoption Apology website including how to obtain a free DVD copy of the event.
http://www.ag.gov.au/About/ForcedAdoptionsApology/Pages/default.aspx
Please note that the Forced Adoption Apology website has been updated to include a link to watch on the apology on the ABC iView website and links to the motions of apology which were moved in the House of Representatives by the Attorney-General Mark Dreyfus QC and in the Senate by Senator Stephen Conroy. The motions are currently before the House of Representatives and the Senate. Consideration in both chambers commenced on 21 March 2013 and will continue when the Parliament returns for the winter sittings (commencing on 14 May 2013). This website will be updated when the timing of the debates in the House of Representatives and the Senate are known closer to the resumption of Parliament in May.
Click here to hear the song "Jessie" Mia Dyson sang at the National Apology
Proceedings from Canberra on the National Apology
National Apology for Forced Adoptions, House of Representatives Hansard document
Senate response to Senate Report Recommendations document
Surrogacy
VANISH refers members to the Victorian Assisted Reproductive website (PLEASE INSERT LINK) for information on surrogacy in Victoria.
VANISH has concerns that in utilising assisted technology and surrogacy we are in danger of repeating the mistakes of traditional adoption with the very substantial hurt and costs to all involved. However, VANISH does not necessarily endorse everything on the VARTA website or everything in the attached Klein paper.
VANISH is keen to promote community discussion and debate on this important issue – in the best interests of the child.
Below is a link to new legal developments regarding Surrogacy in Australia
Bioethics Research notes on Surrogacy in Australia by Dr. Renate Klein
Daughter and donor Dad united
View the article in The Age March 17th 2013 by Farrah Tomazin
Families Australia welcomes first National Childrens Commissioner
Families Australia Media Release
Australian Government seeking input regarding the Terms of Reference for the Royal Commission into the abuse of children
Further detail is available on the website of the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet via the following link:
http://childabuseroyalcommission.dpmc.gov.au/home
Hotline for the Royal Commission on Child Sexual Abuse - 1800 099 340.
Website: http://www.dpmc.gov.au/child_abuse_royal_commission
Email: royalcommissionsecretariat@pmc.gov.au
Some of the papers from the recent 10th National Adoption Conference, held in Melbourne, have been published on-line by the Australian Journal of Adoption.
http://www.nla.gov.au/openpublish/index.php/aja/issue/view/220/showToc
Queensland Government to Apologise for past adoption policies and practices
Premier
The Honourable Campbell Newman
Minister for Communities, Child Safety and Disability Services
The Honourable Tracy Davis
Friday, November 09, 2012
Queensland Government to apologise for past adoption policies and practices
The Queensland Parliament will issue a formal apology to people affected by past forced adoption policies and practices in Queensland at Parliament House on Tuesday 27 November 2012. The historic apology will be made by Premier Campbell Newman, on behalf of the Parliament. Premier Newman said the policies and practices of forced adoptions by successive Governments were wrong and should never have occurred. “This is an extremely sad chapter in the State’s history, which has had profound and lifelong impacts for many mothers, fathers, sons, daughters and their families,” Mr Newman said. “While the past can never be changed, I sincerely hope that hearing the apology will help ease some of the pain of people who have been so deeply affected by this experience.” Minister for Communities Tracy Davis also said the apology would be a significant day for many people. “I have met with some of those who have been affected by these past policies and practices and it is important that as a community we come together to recognise the trauma and pain they experienced,” Ms Davis said. “We want to ensure Queenslanders are aware these practices occurred and that they are never repeated.”
If you would like to attend the apology, please register your interest by visiting www.communities.qld.gov.au or phoning 1800 647 983 (free call within Queensland). As seating in the Public Gallery is very limited, guests will also be able to view the apology’s live streaming in a dedicated room in the Parliamentary Annexe. The apology will be made at 12.30pm AEST and people unable to attend the apology can view a live broadcast online at www.communities.qld.gov.au or www.parliament.qld.gov.au [ENDS] 9 November 2012 Media Contact: Minister Davis’ office 3235 4280 Cheers, Marg Hamilton
Victorian Government apologises for past adoption practices
The Victorian Government has formally apologised to all those affected by the forced adoption practices in the state between the 1950s and 1970s.
The apology follows a landmark inquiry by the Federal Senate, which found up to 250,000 babies were forcibly taken from their mothers, who were mostly young and unmarried.
Premier Ted Baillieu, Opposition leader Daniel Andrews and Nationals leader Peter Ryan addressed a joint sitting of Parliament as about 400 invited guests watched on.
DVD of the Victorian Apology is now available at:
Leigh Hubbard, Chairperson of VANISH, Opinion article for THE AGE
An apology over adoption practices misses a major point
Australian Nursing Federation (Vic. Branch) apology to mothers, fathers and children affected by forced adoption practices.
Australian Nursing Federation (Victorian Branch) Statement
Thursday 25th October 2012
Important news about the Tasmanian Apology.
Premier Lara Giddings MP will deliver a formal apology on behalf of the Tasmanian community to mothers and fathers whose children were removed because of past forced adoption practices, and to people who were separated from their parents as infants as a result of those practices.
The apology will be delivered in the Tasmanian Parliament from 11am on Thursday 18 October 2012.
http://www.parliament.tas.gov.au/Parliament/hatbs.htm
If you have been affected by past forced adoption practices and wish to attend the apology, please call 6270 5638 or email rsvp@dpac.tas.gov.au. As seating is limited, please RSVP by Friday 12 October to ensure a place for yourself and up to one guest.
The apology will also be broadcast live online at
www.parliament.tas.gov.au and DVD copies of the apology are available via the above contact details.
If you have been affected by past adoption practices, support is available by contacting Relationships Australia on 1300 364 277 or Adoption Information Services on 6233 2273.
Inquiry Into Former Forced Adoption Policies and Practices
Last week a Senate Inquiry recommended that Australian Governments must apologise to the mothers and children who suffered because of forced adoption practices. What did happen and what difference will this make?
Click on the link below to listen to a podcast of Leigh Hubbard, Chair of VANISH, discuss this with Nicole Chvaskek on the ABC.
http://www.abc.net.au/overnights/stories/s3448985.htm
Click on the link below to read the Press Release Senate Inquiry
Press Release Senate Inquiry into Former Forced Adoption Policies and Practices
Click on link below to read the Senate Inquiry recommendations
A special edition of the Australian Journal of Adoption has been published containing the full report of the Senate Community Affairs References Committee on the Commonwealth Contribution to Former Forced Adoption Policies and Practices, including the twenty recommendations. There is also a very useful and interesting report of what took place in the senate last Wednesday, which also explains what happens next.
Click on the link below to read the Senate report.
http://www.nla.gov.au/openpublish/index.php/aja
Upcoming ABC Project for mothers and children affected by past adoption policies and practices
An exciting opportunity for mothers and childern to tell their stories through the ABC, using photos, written word, and videos. It’s mostly online, but stories that are created are also seen and heard across the ABC, on ABC Local Radio, News 24, and other programs and websites.
Over more than half the 20th century, thousands of Australian women adopted out their babies.
We now know that many of these women were forced to do so. Unmarried mothers were subject to enormous pressure to relinquish their babies, but there is also evidence that some women were actively coerced, lied to, and in some cases forced to sign their babies away.
In February 2012, the Australian government released a report into forced adoption, which unanimously condemed the practices and policies which separated thousands of mothers from their children. As the government prepares a formal apology to those affected, this photo gallery shows the human face of these policies and practices.
It recognises the individual experiences of people who've had to live with the consequences of these acts.
If you have been separated from your child or your mother by these policies, you're invited to add your photo and story to the gallery.
To contribute:
Go to the ABC Open website and register. You can then upload your photo and story.
OR
Send an email to abcopen@your.abc.net.au with your story and photo.
Please keep your story to under 300 words. While we appreciate that your stories could fill books, longer stories cannot be easily displayed on this site.
News from the Australian Institute of Family Studies
The Past Adoption Experiences Final report has been endorsed for release by the Ministers and can be accessed on the AIFS website. We hope that the report will meet the expectations of all those who have put so much time and energy into assisting with the project to date, and indeed all of the many thousands of individuals whom this project is for and about. Again, many thanks for your time and commitment.
Kind Regards,
Pauline Kenny Research Fellow Australian Institute of Family Studies
Inquiry into access by donor-conceived people to information about donors: Final report tabled.
Click here to read the press release
Parliament of Victoria, Law Reform Commitee.
www.parliament.vic.gov.au/lawreform
National Intercountry Adoption Advisory Group- NICAAG
Appointments to the National Intercountry Adoption Advisory Group - April 2012 The Attorney-General recently made appointments to the National Intercountry Adoption Advisory Group (NICAAG), effective from 1 April 2012.
We are pleased to advise that:
Ms Lesley Ikin has been appointed as the Tasmanian Representative,
Mr Trevor Jordan (professional, Qld),
Ms Jenni Millbank (professional, NSW),
Ms Sue-Yen Bylund (adoptee, WA),
Ms Jasmine Temple-Smith (adoptee, Vic), and
Ms Elizabeth White (adoptee, Qld)
have been appointed as General Members. General Members will sit alongside the State and Territory and Professional Representatives. The introduction of General Member appointments provides the flexibility needed to enable a balanced combination of geographical representation and specialised experience and expertise. The appointees bring a broad mix of experience and expertise, enabling NICAAG to continue its provision of expert and valuable advice on a range of intercountry adoption issues. We congratulate all members on their appointments and look forward to their contribution to NICAAG.
A list of all NICAAG members can be found on the National Intercountry Adoption Advisory Group page.
FORGOTTEN AUSTRALIANS' MEMORIAL
VANISH supports the creation of a permanent memorial to all Victorian Forgotten Australians who, as children, spent time in Victorian orphanages, children’s homes or foster care. The site of the memorial is located on Southbank Promenade, Melbourne approximately half way between the Southbank Pedestrian Bridge and the Sandridge Bridge. The official unveiling of this dedicated sculpture, which is located on Southbank Promenade, Melbourne, took place at 2pm on Monday 25th October, 2010.
