The visit of Her Majesty, Queen Elizabeth II. is an opportune occasion to return to the “saying sorry” series. Full coverage by the BBC.

Four years ago, the Australian government seized control of 73 indigenous communities in the Northern Territory. The Age reports that in Ampilatwatja, 350 km north-east of Alice Springs, Richard Downs, the leader of the Alyawarr people asked that no pictures be taken of his people as it embarrasses them to be pictured living in dirt.

Along dirt streets littered with rubbish and abandoned vehicles, he points out a $500,000 building, the home and office of a government business manager, one of 60 appointed across the territory to supervise delivery of government services under the emergency intervention. ”That’s all we got over four years … a government business manager living here who everyone in the community tries to avoid and doesn’t listen to,” Downs says. Downs says 500 of his people living in Ampilatwatja have been treated as outcasts from white man’s decision-making. ”No one has asked us what will work for us,” he says.

Federal funding for homelands has been capped at $20 million a year for three years and runs out next year. No government funding is available for new houses on homelands, leaving people living in substandard, overcrowded accommodation with poor infrastructure.

A  brave and reconciliatory response by the mother of Northern Irish police man Ronan Kerr , who was killed April second by a bomb as reported by BBC:

“We don’t want to go back into the dark days again of fear and terror.”

“This is at a time when we are striving for a neutral police force for the good of our country and I urge all Catholic members not to be deterred.”

“We all need to stand up and be counted and to strive for equality.”

As ASIL notes in its International Law in Brief (ILIB), the 2006 International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance entered into force late last month, December 22, 2010.  Another core human rights treaty joins the expanding collection!

“We came into politics to address injustice and seek reconciliation. Thank you for walking that road with us on this historic day,” said New Zealand Prime Minister Helen Clark on the occasion of the government’s signing a historic land deal with the Maori. The ownership of nine forests in the central North Island – some 435.000 acres – are being transferred to the Maori.

Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper last week acknowledged that indigenous cultures and beliefs were believed to be inferior and unequal, leading to forced placement of indigenous children in school in pursuit of assimilation. Pointing out that this treatment was a “sad chapter” in Canada’s history, Harper  said: “We now recognise that, far too often, these institutions gave rise to abuse or neglect and were inadequately controlled, and we apologise for failing to protect you.” And: “The government of Canada sincerely apologises and asks the forgiveness of the aboriginal peoples of this country for failing them so profoundly. We are sorry.”

Part of the statement by Australiam Prime Minister Kevin Rudd:

“The time has now come for the nation to turn a new page in Australia’s history by righting the wrongs of the past and so moving forward with confidence to the future.

We apologise for the laws and policies of successive parliaments and governments that have inflicted profound grief, suffering and loss on these our fellow Australians.

We apologise especially for the removal of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children from their families, their communities and their country.

For the pain, suffering and hurt of these stolen generations, their descendants and for their families left behind, we say sorry.

To the mothers and the fathers, the brothers and the sisters, for the breaking up of families and communities, we say sorry.

And for the indignity and degradation thus inflicted on a proud people and a proud culture, we say sorry.

We the Parliament of Australia respectfully request that this apology be received in the spirit in which it is offered as part of the healing of the nation.

For the future we take heart; resolving that this new page in the history of our great continent can now be written.

We today take this first step by acknowledging the past and laying claim to a future that embraces all Australians.

A future where this parliament resolves that the injustices of the past must never, never happen again.”