Shane Bouel: Sorry is only the beginning for forced adoption survivors

Forced adoption survivors have waited long enough. If apologies are all Australia has to offer, then this country has failed a generation of its citizens.

WA once led the world in acknowledging forced adoptions, but the courage to act seems to have ended there. The current Government, like those before it, is content to hide behind symbolism and avoid the heavy lifting of true justice.

Political leaders across parties have failed to address this national neglect, continually refusing to confront the painful truth of forced adoptions.

Even Australia’s top politicians have ties to adoption, yet they remain unwilling to engage meaningfully with the issue.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese narrowly escaped forced adoption himself, while former PM Kevin Rudd once lamented the idea of white Australians having their children taken as a matter of policy — seemingly unaware that this very scenario played out for hundreds of thousands of Australians, with stories still buried and unacknowledged.

In 2013, then-prime minister Julia Gillard delivered a national apology that acknowledged the trauma of forced adoptions, a move that was supposed to mark a turning point.

Instead, it marked the end. The apology was followed by inquiries, reports, and a suite of recommendations for mental health support and institutional accountability — most of which remain unimplemented.

Key proposals for redress and support continue to be ignored, leaving survivors to bear their trauma alone.

WA has also refused to end adoption vetoes, depriving adoptees of the right to know their origins.

Survivors continue to face obstacles in accessing the truth of their past, and the support they receive remains minimal.

Meanwhile, calls for a royal commission to fully investigate forced adoptions have fallen on deaf ears. When I contacted Mr Albanese’s office, the response was that royal commissions are for “exceptional circumstances”.

This implies that forced adoptions don’t merit such attention, despite impacting over 250,000 babies, now adults, plus their mothers, fathers, and extended families, and being deemed “illegal” by the national forced adoptions working group chair Nahum Mushin, the Government’s avoidance shows a disregard for adoptee voices, leaving survivors without recognition or support.

Australia has a long-standing pattern of sidestepping accountability on historical injustices.

Whether its Indigenous rights, the Stolen Generations, or forced adoptions, the government’s playbook remains the same: offer an apology, acknowledge the harm, and then wait for us all to die. Forced adoptions are no exception.

Though WA led with a ground-breaking apology, momentum has miscarried as State and Federal governments fail to follow through meaningfully. For forced adoption survivors, the refusal to provide justice is a deep betrayal.

Symbolic gestures cost nothing, yet our leaders seem content with mere apologies rather than engaging in the hard, inconvenient work of establishing redress and ending outdated policies like adoption vetoes.

Adoptees have continually voiced their need for support and identity rights, yet their calls are met with silence and denial. Survivors are left to advocate for themselves, often providing free psychological labour to inquiries without receiving any formal recognition or support.

While governments stall, the people affected by forced adoptions bear the weight of unresolved trauma. Many mothers live with the guilt and grief of losing their children, and adoptees often struggle with lifelong identity crises and mental health issues. Worse still, mental health services are not tailored to their needs.

Adoptees who learn about their history late in life face psychological fallout and, often, few resources to help them process the truth of their identities.

If Australia’s leaders want to deliver justice, they need to go beyond platitudes. Meaningful action demands the following:

A royal commission: Survivors need a transparent inquiry to hold institutions accountable and to reveal the full truth of forced adoptions.

National Redress Scheme: Survivors deserve financial compensation, free access to mental health services, and support to rebuild their lives—especially adoptees who have long been excluded from standard definitions of birth trauma.

End adoption vetoes and inform adoptees of their status: WA should end vetoes on adoption records, giving adoptees the right to access their origins, and proactively inform adoptees of their adoption status to avoid the devastating shock many experience upon discovering their history.

Trauma-informed education for professionals: Trauma-informed modules in training programs would better prepare professionals in health and social services to understand adoptees’ experiences and provide appropriate support.

Annual public acknowledgment: Establishing a national day of recognition would honour survivors and raise awareness, ensuring that forced adoption history remains visible to the public.

Correct identity documentation: Survivors of forced adoptions deserve accurate birth certificates that reflect their true origins, not sanitised versions that erase their past.

Australia’s apologies for forced adoptions are a beginning, but they cannot be the end. The survivors deserve more than to be sidestepped in favour of political convenience. WA once led by acknowledging forced adoptions, now it’s time for action.

Forced adoption survivors have waited long enough for justice. They deserve a Government willing to face the truth and support them, not one content to offer words and abort follow through. Until the Government stops evading responsibility, Australia’s handling of forced adoptions remains a case study in failed leadership — a painful reminder that symbolic actions mean little without real change.

Shane Bouel is an adoptee and advocate