The Victorian government has admitted it failed to keep children safe in its schools. It today accepted nine recommendations from an inquiry into historical child sexual abuse at Beaumaris Primary School, in Melbourne's southeast. But lawyers say talk is cheap, with victim-survivors still being hounded in the courts.
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00:00More than 50 years after being abused at Bow Morris Primary School, Glenn Fionnette has
00:08a sense of finality.
00:10The truth has come out.
00:12That was always what it was about for us, finding the truth.
00:16The Victorian Government admitting it failed to protect children in government schools
00:21from abuse.
00:22We failed to keep these children safe.
00:25We failed to listen when they spoke out.
00:28We failed to act to ensure that it did not happen again.
00:32And accepting all nine recommendations made from an inquiry into historical child sexual
00:38abuse at Bow Morris Primary School and some other government schools.
00:42There was a culture that prioritised the reputation of the system over the safety of children.
00:49The Government will offer an apology in 2026.
00:53But first, it wants a truth-telling process to hear from sexual abuse victims from all
00:58government schools prior to 2000 and examine how they were responded to.
01:05Victims' survivors are happy to wait.
01:07For us it was very much about giving others the opportunity to have a voice.
01:15But the Opposition says the Government's dragged its feet.
01:18This stain on our state's history is far more numerous, far more impactful than just
01:26Bow Morris.
01:27And finally, victims' survivors will have that opportunity.
01:30The Government's $48 million investment will also include a memorial for Bow Morris survivors
01:36and improving victims' support.
01:38Lawyers say the state now needs to back off those seeking compensation in the courts.
01:44While in public the Premier admits responsibility and failures, in private her lawyers defending
01:49these claims are denying legal responsibility and placing roadblocks in the path of abuse
01:54survivors.
01:55A long-awaited but welcome step forward for victims' survivors.