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1803

Van Dieman’s Land

Van Diemen’s Land was the original European name for the island of Tasmania, located south of mainland Australia. Named in 1642 by Dutch explorer Abel Tasman in honor of Anthony van Diemen, the Governor-General of the Dutch East Indies, it became a British penal colony in the early 1800s. The colonization process was brutal for the Indigenous people, who faced violence, land dispossession, and population decline due to disease, killings, and forced labor. By 1856, the colony was renamed Tasmania, but the impacts of colonization on Indigenous communities remain significant to this day.

1830

The Black Line

The Black Line was a large-scale military operation in Tasmania in 1830 during the Black War. Ordered by Lieutenant-Governor George Arthur, it involved over 2,200 settlers, soldiers, and convicts forming a human chain across settled areas to capture or drive the remaining Aboriginal Tasmanians onto the Tasman Peninsula. Although it captured few individuals, the operation intensified the displacement and suffering of Aboriginal communities, contributing to their near-eradication in Tasmania.

1835

Flinders Island

Flinders Island is part of the Furneaux Group of islands in the Bass Strait, located between mainland Australia and Tasmania. Named after British navigator Matthew Flinders, it became a site of forced relocation for Aboriginal people from Tasmania in the 1830s. The British established the Wybalenna settlement on Flinders Island to “protect” and “civilize” the Indigenous population, but conditions were harsh, with inadequate shelter, food shortages, and widespread disease, leading to significant suffering and death. Flinders Island remains an important historical site reflecting the traumatic impacts of colonial policies on Aboriginal Tasmanians.

1881

Cape Barren Reserve 1881

Established in 1881, this reserve became home to a mixed Indigenous population, labeled “half-castes” by the government, which grew to around 250 people by 1908. Over time, “Cape Barren Islander” became a term used interchangeably with “half-caste,” reflecting government-imposed racial classifications that marginalized the community.

1912

Cape Barren Island Reserve Act 1912

This Act divided the Cape Barren Island Reserve into homesteads and agricultural plots for descendants of those in the Furneaux Islands, allowing them to occupy the land rent-free under strict conditions. Licenses could be inherited but were revoked if a widow married a non-Indigenous man. Residents had to occupy and cultivate the land for six months each year, or risk losing their rights. Non-licensed individuals over 21 could be removed. The Act aimed to encourage “half-castes” to settle off the island but faced low compliance, leading authorities to consider further control measures.

1935

Infants Welfare Act 1935

This Act allowed authorities to remove Indigenous children from their families under the guise of welfare, targeting children deemed “at risk.” It contributed significantly to the Stolen Generations, leading to widespread family separations, loss of cultural identity, and intergenerational trauma in Aboriginal communities.

1945

Cape Barren Island Reserve Act 1945

This Act repealed the 1912 Act, enforcing stricter conditions on Cape Barren Island residents, who now had to reside on the island for nine months each year and make “substantial improvements” to their leased land. It aimed to push residents into self-sufficient agriculture or force them to leave, intending to reduce dependence on social welfare. The Act expired in 1951, leading to the closure of the reserve.

1960

Child Welfare Act 1960

This Tasmanian Act allowed children 16 or younger to be made wards of the state on grounds of “neglect,” disproportionately affecting Indigenous families. Often removed due to poor living conditions rather than parental neglect, children faced separation from families, with parents sometimes imprisoned for “neglect.”

1973

Aboriginal Information Service 1973

This service provided legal representation for Indigenous children and parents in neglect and juvenile justice cases, helping to reduce the removal of Indigenous children from their families. It marked an important step toward protecting Indigenous family rights and challenging discriminatory practices in the child welfare system.

1973

Tasmanian Aboriginal Centre

The Tasmanian Aboriginal Centre (TAC), founded in 1973, serves as a key organization advocating for the political and developmental goals of Tasmania’s Aboriginal community. It provides essential services, including health care, education, cultural programs, and legal support. The TAC has played a pivotal role in reviving palawa kani, Tasmania’s only Aboriginal language in use today.

1984

Aboriginal Child Placement Principle 1984

Implemented in Tasmania, this principle prioritizes placing Aboriginal children in out-of-home care with Aboriginal families to maintain cultural connections. It aims to protect cultural identity and community bonds, reducing the risk of loss of heritage for Indigenous children in the welfare system.