How incredibly sad it is when people can turn a brave woman’s story into a chance to attack her.

Thank you to everyone who has recognised Wilma’s story as being about injustice, abuse and mistreatment of our children. No-where in Wilma’s story does she say “poor me”, nor does she belittle anyone else’s story or how they may or may not cope with what is dealt them. She simply tells the historical facts of her life and the abhorrent way in which she was treated by the people who should have cared for her. The adults that were in charge of her life.

I have also known Wilma since my childhood, where her home was often a haven for children whose home life was less than perfect.
None of us, who grew up knowing this amazing woman, knew of the atrocities that she suffered and held inside, until we were adults.

A kinder, gentler and more generous woman you would not meet.

I applaud you Wilma, and hope you stand proud for telling your story, because I am so very, very proud of you.

FrankGol “I disagree …: “move on or not””
You are merely reciting excuses for why people do not.

“it is a distortion to describe people who were raped and abused as “victims of their past”.”

Where is the distortion?

“Even when the perpetrators were exposed, they were often just moved on to the next institution to continue their evil.”

The absence of oversight and supervision is exactly what I have previously identified as the real problem.

“The state had a duty of care”

The individual charitable organisations who took on responsibility had the duty of care.

The “State” as you call it represents tax payers, whose taxes were used to help fund the charities. Tax payers were equally abused by the failure of the charitable organisation to administer responsibilities which they took on and failed to oversee the conduct of their officers.

“If you are haunted by memories - why shouldn’t the state pay for ongoing counselling?”

I have done many things in my life, some of them not the wisest. One of them a friend recommended I seek counselling over.

I sought counselling and it was some of the best money I ever spent.

This is where you and I part views. I believe in doing what needs to be done, regardless of the cost, you seem to be hell bent on making the tax payer responsible for everything.

If it were me who had been abused by some dirty old man I would be hell bent on doing two things

1 seeking all the advise and help I needed to repair the damage to myself, regardless of cost.
2 putting concerted effort into ensuring my abuser was publicly exposed and prosecuted by every means possible

If I wanted to remain a victim and not move on, I would have no need to do either 1 or 2.

Regardless of what you have written to the contrary, you have really agreed with me, there are only two options, move on or not move on. There are only ever those two options

Col although I agree [and applaud] your arguements in some forums, in this instance you are showing your complete lack of knowledge of the damage that institutional child rearing has done to many individuals.

Some individuals will survive no matter what life throws at them but the vast majority will be swamped by their circumstances.

You and I from the comfort of our middle class existences can always rustle up the money for counselling whatever the cost. People who have been institutionalised often have limited education, and if they have been bashed or their teeth have been knocked out or they have been bought up on institutional food they have plain looks. Poor education and ordinary looks equates to lower pay. You never here of these kids undertaking apprenticeships because who would pay the bond?

Chances are these people made poor life choices and are rearing their children in poverty.

A woman of my acquaintance was reared in institutions including ending up in Turana and her 15 year old son is uncontrollable and heading down the same path. She has provided better parenting than she experienced but to be truthful, she had no role models and it's a lot lower standard than you would have provided your girls.

When you are a "client" of social security you have a marginal tax rate of 60% if you earn extra money. Or even nastier, if you declare your additional income and a DSS clerk stuffs up the arithmetic the client has to pay it back. Or as in the case of my friend when she trained for a nursing job she was unable to get rostered on for sufficient shifts to be independent of DSS. Yeah, how can nurses run a house on 5 hour shifts 5 times a fortnight. Social security clients have wait to receive counselling, see the dentist, doctor etc.

The black-and-white assertions from Col Rouge are superficial. And a shaky grasp of the facts leads to a misleading argument.

Read the "Forgotten Australians" Report (Senate August 2004) Col and you will see that the majority of institutionalised children were wards of the state. That is, the states took unto themselves the legal responsibility for care and protection of these children (in many cases against the will of their families).

In many cases the states outsourced the day-to-day responsibility for the 'care' of children to private charities and churches - and paid per capita allowances.

But these payments in no way gave the states the right to absolve themselves of their legal duty of care. Their failure to provide supervision of institutions and to require accountability for what went on in institutions is the nub of the problem. To continue to blame the victims is both insensitive and ignorant. We can't all be as strong as you, Col.

Hundreds of thousands (the Senate Report conservatively calculated 500,000) of children were exposed to danger in institutions. And an unknown proportion of these were victims of predatory 'carers' while the state as their legal guardians made no effort to leran what was going on.

So, the unfortunate taxpayers will have to carry the burden for the negligence and dereliction of duty of the states. Not fair, Col Rouge, but morally and legally right.

I am with you Sis !
I found it really interesting that the people who attacked Wilma didn't attack any of the other two people in recent reports by Bernie Matthews.

I can image why those of the apologist- "I must protect institutions no matter what they are" attitude didn't attack the ex police officer- even though he did receive that dreadful thing - compensation, and even though he admitted he didn't really 'move on' from it all!

That weak scum-bags sooed themselves onto a women who as a girl was raped abused and humiliated by other scum-bags does not surprise me in the least!

As a matter of fact. it totally fits the sociopathology of what occured in the first instance!

Interesting hey

Col Rouge, I have done many things in my life,some of them not the wisest. One of them a friend recommended I seek counselling over.
I sought counselling and it was the best money I ever spent.

I suggest ass head you try sitting in a group work shop with Only people that were locked up with sick ,evil ,animals, as children and listen to there heart wrenching, sick, evil, cruel, sadistic stories inflicted on us as vulnerable children while in "care" of
State and church.
And let the past providers pull out some money to help them.

It very sad powerful to see the barriers start to break after a few days, with people that don't judge, do understand, are not shocked. do believe no matter how graphic. speaking for the first time,
whats festered there for years spews out.

Col. If it was me being abused by some dirty old man, I would be hellbent on doing two things.

The sick thing Col it was young strong men and twisted women also that were within all systems.

1 -Seeking all the advise and help i needed to repair the damage to myself, no matter the cost.

Done that also Col, Chronic Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. pain and suffering"

2- Putting concertrated effort into ensuring my abuser was publicly exposed and prosecuted by every means possible.

Procedures have started Col, Abusers will pay,
Abuse as a State Ward,

Mr Rouge.
It is money well spent by the churches the States also the tax payers money for the Senate Inquiry. The Children and there family's lives that were screwed and very much still are.
Myself and my children have always paid our way and taxes , so there is no guilt trip with me only Justis.

Rattles