With Our Best Wishes

It has been a very successful year for us and we are looking forward to 2010 with much anticipation.

February will see the much awaited changes to the Queensland Adoption Laws and the launch of the Post Adoption Support Queensland with Susan Kelly as team leader.

Susan will speak at our February Meeting
Details to come in the new year.

Our Special Thanks to everyone who has helped us through the year.

Christmas celebration

A Christmas Lunch at The Ox at Margate on 28th November was enjoyed by everyone.
It was nice to have some of our Adoptees and Mothers together for our final meeting and to celebrate such a successful year.
It has been a very busy year and we are very proud of our achievements.

Margaret

We believe this to be the very First Apology to Adoptees

Congratulations to members of WASH (White Australian Stolen Heritage) on receiving an Apology for all Adoptees seeking an apology.
Some ladies from ALAS had the privilege of watching Professor Ian Jones, on behalf of the Royal Brisbane Women's Hospital present to Victoria Fitzpatrick and Kerry Saint a long awaited apology. A very disappointed third member of the team, Therese Hawken was unable to attend due to illness.


The letter from the Royal Brisbane Women's Hospital reads,

To The White Australian Stolen Heritage (WASH) group and all Adoptees seeking an apology.

Dear Friends,
Thank you for meeting with me at the Royal Brisbane Women's Hospital and sharing your experiences of being an adopted one. I was saddened to hear how half truths,lies, feelings of abandonment, lack of knowledge of your origins and missed opportunities to grow up and be with your siblings, have and continue to adversely affect your lives, and many other lives of those who are near and dear to you.

Our open, honest and obviously painful discussions have helped me to understand how you have been denied the right to experience the natural relationship between you and your mother, your siblings and extended family because of the practices in place at the time of your birth. Some of you were subjected to many different types of abuse; from being denied contact with your mother and by the family in which you were placed.

In this regard on behalf of the Royal Brisbane Women's Hospital, I acknowledge the hurt and suffering you have described and sincerely apologise for any ill treatment you experienced while in hospital by being taken and denied contact with your mother at the time of your birth.
For similar reasons I have also apologise to those families who have experienced hurt and suffering through the tragic and harmful effects caused by adoption.

Yours sincerely,
Professor Ian Jones
Obstetrician and
Executive Director
Women's and Newborn Services
Royal Brisbane and Women's Hospital
12/11/09

Letter in Courier Mail 14th November 2009

This letter typifies the misguided concepts that were proliferated in the 60's and 70's and still exists today.

Hooray for the proposed national breast milk bank (C-M, November 13). When I was having my children (now in their late 30's) at the Royal Women's Hospital, single mothers were in a special veranda ward away from the other mothers, as they were all giving their babies away for adoption. After every feed we had to express our leftover milk for the babies who were being given away (hepatitis and AIDS were far from anyone's mind).
I am glad to see that babies will once again be given the best start in life they can get.
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This is the response I have written to the Courier Mail. I hope they print it!

Over 30 years ago I was one of the mother's who "gave away" my baby for adoption.
The facts are, we did not give away our babies!They were taken.Our crime was, we were unmarried. Adoption signatures were taken under the influence of strong medication. Most mothers were under age and were kept in isolation in the "special veranda ward" away from "respectable Mothers".
While you were expressing breast milk for our babies, we were given drugs to dry up our milk and had our chest bound to suppress milk. We did not agree to this, in fact we were denied any contact with our babies to make sure adoption practices went ahead smoothly.
Our rights as a mother were violated. My baby was born at the Royal Brisbane Women's Hospital.
The Hospital has recognized the crimes relating to adoption and the never ending trauma mothers have to endure from the loss of their babies.
A public apology by the Royal Brisbane Women's Hospital in June 2009 was presented to mothers who were treated badly while in the care of their hospital.

So you can see that, while breast milk is good, natural mothers milk is best.
Margaret
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IT NEVER FAILS TO AMAZE ME THAT PEOPLE BELIEVE THAT "ALL" MOTHERS "GAVE AWAY" THEIR BABIES, IN EVERY HOSPITAL, IN EVERY STATE IN AUSTRALIA.

Support from Aboriginal Elder

Apology Alliance has received a fax from the much esteemed,
Initiated Yuin Elder, Uncle Max Dulumunmun Harrison offering his support to the Apology Alliance and all member groups in gaining an apology for the White Stolen Generation.

Uncle Max's words,

To Whom It May Concern

As an Aboriginal Elder, I fully understand the pain and suffering that has been done to my people in the past, and the traumatic times that we have endured.

I applaud the Prime Ministers apology to our mob, but what about the White Stolen Generations that has suffered the same fate.

I know many white people who has went through the same pain.

So why can't this government do its healing again, and apologise th the White Stolen Generation to bring closure to all this suffering.

As we walk the same land,
Breathe the same air
Drink the same water.

Signed by
Yuin Elder Max Dulumunmun Harrison

2/11/2009.
Apology Alliance has humbly and gratefully accepted this support from Uncle Max in his capacity as Indigenous Elder.

ALAS, as one of the member groups, would also like to send our thanks and appreciation to Uncle Max.

Christmas Meeting 28th November 2009

Our last meeting of the year will be a Christmas celebration.
It will be held at:
The OX Restaurant,
Oxley Ave., Margate.
Time 11.45am onwards.
Please RSVP by 25th November.
Contact Trish Mob:0417 077 159 or
Marg Mob:0402 336 480


Come along and help us celebrate our achievements of 2009.
All welcome.

COPY OF A LETTER SENT TO AN ALAS QLD MEMBER

"I am pleased to advise the Adoption Act 2009 was passed by the Parliament on 18 August 2009. The new law will come into effect on 1 February 2010.

The passage of the Adoption Act 2009 heralds the most significant reform to Queensland's adoption law in over 45 years. As Minister for Child Safety, I am honoured to have been given the responsibility of leading the debate and passage of this historic legislation through the Parliament on behalf of the Government.

The Adoption Act 2009 is available for download free of charge from the Queensland Legislation website (www.legislation.qld.gov.au under 'Acts as passed for 2009) and printed copies can be purchased from the Queensland Government Bookshop (www.bookshop.qld.gov.au).

A team is in place to undertake the range of activities that are required to prepare for the delivery of adoption services under the new law. The Adoption Reform Implementation Team is working closely with Adoption Services Queensland to develop the new policies and practice that will support service delivery under the new law.

Now that the Adoption Act 2009 has been enacted, the reform team's priority is to develop information and resources about the changes to the law and how they affect various client groups and other people with an interest in adoption. This information will be distributed through a range of communication activities to ensure as many people as possible are aware of the changes and how they will be affected.

The best source of information about the key areas of change introduced by the Adoption Act 2009 is the department's website (www.childsaftey.qld.gov.au), which will continue to be updated with new information leading up to the Act's commencement on 1 February 2010.

_____


You can also contact the Adoption Reform Implementation Team for information or confidential advice on how the law might affect you. The team's contact details are listed at the end of this letter. Until the new law takes affect in 2010, adoption services will continue to be delivered in line with the Adoption of Children Act 1964.

Yours sincerely,

Phil Reeves MP
Minister for Child Safety
and Minister for Sport
Minister for Mansfield

Contact the Adoption Reform Implementation Team
Postal address:
GPO Box 806 Brisbane, Qld 4000

Phone:
1800 811 810 (Qld only)
(07) 3224 8045

Phone (TTY):
(07) 3012 8655

Fax:
(07) 3235 9422

Email:
adoptionreform@childsafety.qld.gov.au"