Australian adoption law sparks ‘stolen generation’ fear

SYDNEY: A new law allowing children to be adopted without birth parents’ consent could create a new “stolen generation” of Aboriginal children, community groups say.

The term refers to the thousands of indigenous youths who were put in foster care with white families under assimilation policies that persisted into the 1970s.

Under child protection law amendments passed by the New South Wales (NSW) parliament on Thursday, parents of children in care have two years to reclaim them before they can be found a permanent home elsewhere.

The government said the change would prevent vulnerable young people from being moved around multiple foster homes.

But critics say it will disproportionately affect Aboriginal children, who account for just five percent of under-18s in the state, but over a third of those in foster care.

Shadow families minister Tanya Mihalik said no one wants to see children languishing in care.

“But nor do we want to see a stolen generation.”

NSW Family and Community Services Minister Pru Goward defended the new rules as necessary for the youngsters’ stability.

“Unfortunately, there are parents who continually apply to stall the adoption process,” Goward wrote in Sydney’s Daily Telegraph.

“This is particularly destabilising for a young person,” she said.

“That is why we are reforming the law to ensure children have a safe and loving home.”

Aborigines are among the most disadvantaged Australians, with far higher poverty and incarceration rates than other groups. — AFP