Forced adoption taskforce co-chair quits after accusing State Government of attempting to ‘silence’ victims

A new reference group set up to address the impact of WA’s history of forced adoptions has had a shaky start, with a co-chair quitting and accusing the State Government of attempting to “silence” victims. Jennifer McRae has told The West Australian she was “told off” after writing to Minister for Child Protection Jessica Stojkovski, to lobby for redress for survivors and a notification system to alert adults who don’t know they were adopted. “I haven’t signed any kind of confidentiality . . . the reply was, you’ve accepted the position so it’s kind of an assumed expectation,” Ms McRae said. “We’ve been told we’re not discussing that and my role as co-chair was to make sure that we stay on task. “The expectation was that I was not to participate in advocacy work. There was no way I could agree to that, because it’s my voice and to be silenced yet again by a government organisation, the very organisation that removed me from my mother, is just too much to ask.” The State Government confirmed that Ms McRae has “voluntarily” elected to withdraw her application for the reference group. “The State Government is committed to ensuring people with lived experience of forced adoption play a key role in driving change and informing the legislation, policies, practices and services that impact them,” a Government spokesman said on Friday. The Government spokesman said a notification system, recommended by a parliamentary inquiry into forced adoption last year, was not supported “due to the potential to cause significant harm and distress” but that the process for adults to apply for information was being improved. Ms McRae said many adoptees, potentially hundreds, don’t know to ask. “This is a human rights issue,” she said. “People do have a right to know that they’re adopted because it impacts so many parts of their lives and now their own children, especially around being able to access your medical information. “If you had the BRCA gene (linked to breast cancer) in your bloodline, knowing that can save your life.” Ms McRae, who was named Albany’s community citizen of 2025, has also vowed to continue fighting for a redress scheme, similar to the $85,000 payment announced last month for members of WA’s Aboriginal stolen generation. The Government has only committed to “further consideration” of a redress scheme, that the Standing Committee on Environment and Public Affair’s report “Broken Bonds, Fractured Lives” recommended should include a monetary payment and a personal apology from institutions. “We’ve had a pretty vague (response), not yes or no,” Ms McRae said. “This would be a great opportunity for the reference group to discuss redress.”