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Innledning
Michael Lavarch's article titled "Australia must act now to prevent a new Stolen Generation tragedy" was published on 8 October 2016 in The Guardian.

The article is an edited version of the Elliott Johnston Memorial Lecture, titled "A New Stolen Generation," which he delivered at Flinders University on 6 October 2016.

In February 2008, Prime Minister Kevin Rudd delivered a national apology to the Australian Parliament and its people, expressing remorse for the forced removal of children and the devastating impact it had on Indigenous families.

This apology came more than a decade after the release of the Bringing Them Home report.

Utdrag
By 30 June 2015, there were approximately 43,000 Australian children living in out-of-home care due to state welfare agency intervention, representing 8.1 children per 1,000.

Of these, 15,000 children were Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander, accounting for 35% of all children placed outside their homes. This is disproportionate since Indigenous children comprise only 5.5% of the total children aged 0-17.

The disparity has been growing, as at the time of the apology, Indigenous children were seven times more likely to be placed outside their homes, and now this figure has escalated to ten times higher.

This alarming trend necessitates immediate action to prevent a tragic recurrence of the Stolen Generations.

It is evident that Australia is at a crucial juncture in child welfare for Aboriginal children, and the continued separation of children like the Stolen Generations must be halted with immediate and decisive measures.

So, what actions can be taken to address the issue? Firstly, there must be a clear and specific goal to bridge the gap between Indigenous and non-Indigenous child welfare services.

The text proposes amending the goals for closing the gap to include a clear objective of reducing the number of out-of-home placements for both Indigenous and non-Indigenous children by half before 2025.

This change in focus would highlight the issue and hold the Prime Minister accountable by requiring progress updates in the annual report to Parliament on closing the gap.

The text also emphasizes the principle of placing Indigenous children with their extended families whenever possible, and if that's not feasible, keeping them within their Indigenous communities.