Our next meeting 20th February 2010

This meeting will be held northside Brisbane.

We are delighted to have as our guest speaker, the Team Leader from PASQ (Post Adoption Support Queensland).

We are looking forward to hearing how this new Support Services will be of benefit to us.
With the new Adoption Law changes, most mothers and adoptees will now have the opportunity to have information previously denied to them.

For address details;
Please phone Trish; mob.0417 077 159.or
Marg; mob.0402 336 480.
Time; 12 o'clock
Please bring a plate.
A gold coin donation would be appreciated.

NO AGE LIMIT ON SEEKING BIRTH PARENTS

Laws giving adopted children and their birth parents greater access to information about each other are among a raft of measures coming into effect in NSW today.

Community Services Minister Linda Burney said that under the changes, children would no longer need to be 18 before identifying information could be released.

"Worldwide research shows that adopted children benefit enormously from developing a strong sense of identity knowing who they are and where they come from," Ms Burney said yesterday.

"Regardless of how loving and caring the home adoptive parents provide, it's human nature for children to want to know about their history, culture, biological family and possible brothers and sisters. Similarly, birth parents and siblings may want to know about the adopted child."

Ms Burney said there would still be strict controls over the information.

"Before information about an adopted person under 18 years is released, a careful assessment will identify any issues. Records will be checked and adoptive parents consulted."


From The Australian
January 1st 2010.
Jared Owen.

Well done NSW!
Now Queensland,what about us?

OUR FIRST SUPPORT MEETING FOR 2010.

Our first meeting will be Brisbane southside.

At this meeting,a guest speaker from Child Safety Services will talk with us and answer our question on the New Adoption Laws.

Starting time 12 o'clock.
Please bring a plate.

For details please,
Ring Trish; Mob 0417 077 159
Marg; Mob 0402 336 480
New members welcome.

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.