Australia commemorates "Sorry Day"

‘Sorry Day’ map marks tribal nationsA map of Australia, showing the different tribal nations of the Aboriginal people, will hang in the Macksville Hospital waiting room as a memorial to Sorry Day.

The map was presented to the hospital on February 13 to mark the first anniversary of the day that Prime Minister Kevin Rudd said ‘sorry’ to the people who were removed from their families under government programs.

The maps were given to hospitals by Population Health, and identified the traditional land areas of Aboriginal groups, and the trade routes used by each in times before European settlement.

Aboriginal Health and Education Officer Paula Craig said, in a statement read at the presentation, that the ‘sorry’ declaration had been the first step in a long process to close the gaps between indigenous and non indigenous communities, from life expectancy to education and employment opportunities.Comment:  For more on the subject, see Our Turn to Apologize?