11th August 2000

Cubillo-Gunner judgement makes case for national 'stolen generations' tribunal

Australians for Native Title and Reconciliation (ANTaR) said today that the Cubillo-Gunner stolen generations judgement makes the strongest case for the need for a national tribunal to settle these cases.

ANTaR condemns the fact that members of the stolen generations were forced to go through deep trauma to prove their cases in court, only to be rebuffed on technical grounds.

As a nation we can choose.

We can force stolen generations people into court to prove their case. They eventually will, but at the cost of tens of millions of dollars and continuing trauma both for members of the stolen generations and for the nation.

Or we can choose to be decent. As a nation we can acknowledge that the court process is not appropriate for these cases. A tribunal is the only mechanism that can deliver justice to members of the stolen generations.

For interviews, please contact: Peter O'Brien 02 9555 6138 or 0413 735 095