Indigenous Foster Care Funding Axed

The NT Government, without consultation, has cut $159,000 out of the budget of KARU, the only Territory organisation which is charged with the placement of Aboriginal children who have been taken into foster care, Shadow Minister for Family and Children Services, Dr Richard Lim said in Parliament today.

“In line with the current Aboriginal Child Placement Principle, agreed to by all State and Territory governments, Aboriginal children taken into foster care must be place with Aboriginal foster families in the first instance, and KARU is charged to do this,” Dr Lim said.

“The $159,000 taken away from KARU by the Northern Territory Government represents the complete Territory commitment out of the budget of this organisation, effectively rendering it inoperable.

“Meanwhile, KARU continues to be legally responsible for these fostered Aboriginal children, but finds itself unable to monitor and manage the charges under their care.

“This is a surprising and nonsensical approach by the Martin Labor Government.

“What is surprising is that we’ve heard the Martin Labor Government waxing over the issue of the care and protection of Aboriginal children and how necessary it is to provide as much protection as possible for these children.

“The Martin Government, in agreement with all other State and Commonwealth governments, maintains that the best model for fostering of Aboriginal children is that they should be placed with Aboriginal families. Yet it denies KARU its very survival to undertake its job.

“The work of child placement will still have to be done but the Government has yet to explain how this will be done under the Aboriginal Child Placement Principle.

“The question that is unanswered is ‘How is this better for the Aboriginal children concerned?’ There is no evidence that KARU has failed in its functions or duty of care or neglect. In fact the opposite is the truth, that the organisation under present management and governance is doing a good job.

“Closing down KARU means the establishment of another bureaucracy and more fat cats to do a job that is now being done well.

“Aboriginal people and their children deserve better from the Martin Labor Government. The funding to KARU must be re-instated,” Dr Lim said.

2006-05-05