There was an article in the paper "The West Australian" talking about compensation for those sent out here in the 1940's, 1950's and 1960's. They mentioned that other children were also sent to America, but they make no mention of Canada at all. There is a group of 98 who are appealing to the British Govt for compensation at the way they were treated when they arrived here. They are also still trying to get their records to find out if they have relatives or not. Hopefully something will come out of this, and one advantage those who were sent to Australia have is that they are still alive and able to pursue their past whereas a lot of the poor souls who were sent to Canada died not knowing. Good luck to everyone in their searches for the truth about their families. Sandy Jones <sanjones@wn.com.au> ----------------------- CHILD MIGRANTS CHALLENGE UK By Anne Buggins FORMER British child migrants based in Perth have issued a legal challenge to the British Government in the European Court of Human Rights. About 93 former migrants have lodged claims with the court alleging that Britain violated the European Convention on Human Rights by denying them access to official records which might have helped them trace their families. Part of their legal team includes the United States class action legal firm which successfully represented relatives of Jewish Holocaust victims in a multi-billion-dollar claim against European banks two years ago. "We have got a Goliath to fight a Goliath," International Association of Former Child Migrants and their Families president Norman Johnston said this week. Mr Johnston 58, of Riverton, said the migrants who had lodged claims were mainly Australian, though some lived in Britain and the US. He claimed between 7000 and 10,000 British children were sent to Australia in the 1940s, 50s and 60s as part of an international scheme in which 130,000 children were deported worldwide. Many claim they suffered physical and sexual abuse in institutions in Australia. Mr Johnston said former child migrants were emotionally scarred by their experiences. Sending them away from their families and later refusing them access to records was unforgivable. He said the British Government had dodged responsibility for the former migrants"plight by referring their claims to the Australian Government, which had said State governments were responsible. In the meantime, former child migrants continued to suffer social and health problems and remaining relatives continued to die. Former child migrant Desmond McDaid, 56, of Applecross, said he found his mother only eight years ago. "It's a desperate status now, people are dying," he said. "Nature has imposed a sunset clause." The European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg can hear allegations of human riots violations against the 41 European signatories to the European Convention on Human Rights. It has the power to identify violations, which member countries usually act to remedy and, in some cases, will order compensation be paid. The claims, which were lodged this month, must be formally admitted for hearing before they can proceed. If admitted, claims can take up to two years to finalise. ----------------------- Sandy and Lenny Jones 79 Endersbee Street, MERREDIN WA 6415 sanjones@wn.com.au ==== BRITISHHOMECHILDREN Mailing List ==== BHC Registry (Database)and BHC Website: http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.com/~britishhomechildren BHC Chat: http://clubs.yahoo.com/clubs/descendantsofhomechildren ============================== Search over 600 million names at Ancestry.com! http://www.ancestry.com/rd/rwlist1.asp