Police chief in Aborigine outreach

SORRY FOR PAST WRONGS ON INDIGENOUS PEOPLE — WESTERN AUSTRALIA OFFICIAL

An Australian state police chief yesterday made a historic apology to indigenous people who are over-represented in prisons and vowed to improve race relations.

Western Australia police commissioner Chris Dawson said police were key participants in past wrongs against indigenous people in the state over decades, including enforcing government policies of removing mixed-race children from Aboriginal families until the 1970s. The children are known as the Stolen Generations. Many were institutionalised, abused and neglected.

“Some of the comments I’ll be making shortly are confronting and may make some people feel uncomfortable, but I understand that truth-telling is an important part of enabling and facilitating change,” Dawson said in a speech at police headquarters in Perth.

“And so today, on behalf of the Western Australian Police Force, I would like to say ‘sorry’ to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples for our participation in past wrongful actions that have caused immeasurable pain and suffering,” he added.

The apology surprised some indigenous leaders but was widely welcomed.

Western Australia has the second-highest proportion of indigenous Australians after the Northern Territory.

Indigenous Australians make up only 3 per cent of the national population, but 25 per cent of Australia’s prison population.

Dawson said the history of conflict between the indigenous population and police included removing children from communities, tribes from their land, violence, racism and incarceration.

“From this day forward and in my time as police commissioner, I will take steps to heal historical wounds between police and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people,” he added.

Dawson said race relations were improving. The state now had an indigenous-run police station in the outback Aboriginal community of Warakuma, where the crime rate was falling, he said.

Aboriginal Legal Service of Western Australia chief executive Dennis Eggington said the apology was a brave and positive step toward improving relations.

“Commissioner Dawson is smart enough to know that we’re over-represented in the justice system not because we’re more criminal, but because of social manipulation, discrimination and not having proper relationships which we should have had from very early days,” Eggington said.