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British children sent to Australia

The home children are one of the grand schemes founded in 1869 by Annie MacPherson

in which more than 100000 children had been sent from the UK to Australia, South Africa,

Canada, and New Zealand. The scheme and program had been largely discontinued in the 1930s;

however, not completely terminated until the 1970s. Later the research starting in the 1980s

exposed the hardships and the abuse that relocated children underwent. Moreover, about 130000

children who had been sent to particular colonies in the period of 1920s and the 1970s

experienced hard labor, servitude, and abuse. This paper will address the problem of the children

sent to Australia and the problems that they experienced, such as maltreatment and how they

suffered.

Maltreatment and the British children suffered

More than 130000 children were migrated and sent on a "better life" program to previous

colonies, primarily Canada and Australia, from the years 1920 to the ‘70s on Child Migrant

Programme. The kids between ages three and fourteen were particularly invariably from poor

settings and backgrounds. Many people, including the children's parents, believed they were

going to have a better life. The charities, including the catholic church, Barnado's, and the

Fairbridge Society and the Anglican church and local authorities, assisted with the organization

of the migration (The Guardian). When the kids had reached their destination-Australia, they

were often reminded they were orphans to initiate their fresh beginning better. The majority of
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the parents were single parents who were forced to give their children for adoption due to the

social stigma and poverty. The parents believed they were giving their children a chance at a

better life despite not knowing the details about where their children were going. However, the

majority of the children faced and experienced hardships such as childhood of bondage and

forced and hard labor in nurture homes. Additionally, they also underwent servitude in remoted

farms, church-run institutions, and state-operated orphanages. Moreover, they were usually

detached from their siblings, and some were even exposed to sexual and physical abuse (BBC).

Therefore, the children underwent grave maltreatment and suffering. Even though they had put

trust in their government and agencies, they had failed in their duty to care for the children. As a

result, the children were denied a childhood, their identity, family, and a sense of belonging.

Some of the children underwent grave physical child abuse and sexual abuse, which was a

violation of human rights.

Actors involved in the programs

There were numerous actors who were involved in organizing the migration and transfer

of the children to Australia. The philanthropists believed that sending the children thousands of

miles to Canada and Australia was performing a charitable deed. Charity organizations like the

Barnado's, the catholic, and the Anglican church helped organize the emigration of the children

aged between 3 and 24 years of age. Additionally, the local authorities within Britain were also

involved in helping further the scheme. Additionally, the Fairbridge society farm school was also

a significant actor involved in the Child Migrants Programme. The children who had been sent to

the farm school narrate the deal of suffering and neglect they underwent. For instance, according

to the guardian, Obrien, one of the children who had been taken to Fairbridge state, life had been

brutal and cruel (The Guardian). The children had no shoes, coats and were often usually
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physically and mentally abused. Moreover, The Bindoon Boys Town, which was a Christina

Brothers institution near Perth, was involved in establishing cruelty to innocent children. The

Guardian magazine presents the narration of Tony Costa, who had been taken to the Bindoon

Boys Town. According to Costa at Bindoon, he was subjected to endless cement mixing, brick

making, and carting them up a ramp without a safety measure, no shoes, and whenever a brick

dropped, it would land a child's feet.

The child migrant programme was developed by Annie Macpherson in the year 1869.

The program saw the migration of numerous children from the UK to Australia and Canada. The

program had two primary aims, for instance, to ease the load on the UK children's home and also

boost the populaces of the colonies. The program aimed to help alleviate the labor shortages in

the colonies. The program targeted younger children from single parents living in poverty and

hoped to ensure their children attained a better life (The Guardian). As stated earlier, the targeted

children by the programme were children between the ages of three and fourteen. Some of the

colonies that the migrant children helped serve included the swan river colony in Australia and

the Cape Colony in southern Africa.

How the programme impacted the lives of the children

The program adversely impacted the lives of the children. From the research and

encounters that the children had undergone during their tender ages, much had been taken away

from them. From analyses of their experiences and encounters while in foreign countries, the

children admitted to the disservice and maltreatments they were subjected to. For instance,

according to the BBC, Rex Wade, who had been taken to Australia at the age of 10, remembers

the verbal, physical, and mental abuse he had undergone in Australia (BBC). According to him,

he had lost everything he had at the tender age of 10, for instance, his family and relationships.
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Even at an older age, Rex Wade admits it is difficult to deal with and get over with the particular

encounters. Additionally, another victim John Glynn also states the program took away his

childhood. He had been sent to western Australia at eight years of age. John narrates how he had

been told he wasn't loved by his family, and while in Australia, he was beaten brutally and

sexually abused. While he is grown, he says he thinks that a lot now and understands how his

childhood, heritage, and country had been taken away from him.

The government of Britain and the Australian government have since apologized for the

maltreatment of the children sent to Australia. For instance, the United Kingdom prime minister

offered an official apology to express regret for the ill-advised programme. As a result, the

government promised to offer £20000 as compensation for the mistreatment (The Guardian).

Notably, the former migrants feel that even though they could not acquire justice while they were

young, they would love to die knowing that justice was served. Even though they have not joined

the organizations that have asked for an apology and reparations, it is only great that the

government ensures justice prevails. This is because the government was culpable on many

fronts. For instance, it failed to protect the children, failed to respond to abuse cries, and did not

want to jeopardize its relationships with the Australian government. The experiences

encountered by the children during their tender ages were unimaginable, and while measures are

taken to avoid such injustices in the future, the adults who were maltreated should receive

reparations.
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Works Cited

BBC. "UK child migrants sent to Australia sue government over abuse." BBC, 2018.

https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-45340295#:~:text=More%20than%20100%20Britons

%20who,over%20the%20abuse%20they%20suffered.&text=Between

%201945%2D70%2C%20some%204%2C000,sent%20to%20Australia%20and

%20Zimbabwe.

The Guardian. "UK child migrants sent to Australia offered $36k compensation." The

Guardian, 2018. https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2019/feb/01/uk-child-migrants-

sent-to-australia-offered-just-20k-compensation#:~:text=Under%20the%20programme

%2C%20more%20than,hard%20labour%20in%20foster%20homes.