Arabic version: دوائر الحوار تُحذّر من مخاطر تهدد أطفال السكان الأصليين
According to ABC News, carers in South Australia have raised concerns that Aboriginal children in state care risk losing connection to family, culture and country, with some saying the history of the Stolen Generations is being repeated.
South Australia has the nation’s second-highest rate of children in out-of-home care, and almost 40 per cent of those children — 1,785 — are Aboriginal. The rate of Aboriginal children in care was 88.6 per 1,000 Aboriginal children, compared with 62.4 nationally.
Aboriginal-led organisation KWY has launched Wilto Willo, a four-year research project seeking community-led ways to reduce the over-representation of Aboriginal children in care. About 200 carers have shared feedback through yarning circles in Port Lincoln, Port Augusta and Adelaide. KWY research and development senior manager Rebecca Cort said the project’s next phase would focus on peer-led solutions.
Port Lincoln carer Evelyn Walker said participants identified staff turnover, fly-in fly-out arrangements, shortages, poor communication and delayed assessments as barriers. She said some children and care families had gone six months without a support worker, while other children had not seen a psychologist or received assessments relating to medication. Ms Walker also said some children in non-First Nations placements had lost contact with family and culture.
Department for Child Protection chief executive Jackie Bray said the agency was working to improve outcomes through advice from Aboriginal colleagues and community members, family-led decision-making and more family group conferencing. She said laws taking effect next year would mandate the Aboriginal child placement principle. The department has vacancies in Port Lincoln and is recruiting, she said.
Ms Cort said children in out-of-home care were more likely to encounter the justice system when police were called over behavioural issues that might otherwise be handled privately at home. Yarning circle facilitator Tamara Noel said carers wanted the department and other organisations to listen to their experiences and learn from community.
