Secrets We Keep

Three years ago, journalist Joey Watson learnt about the ultimate spy story. During the Cold War, the Australian spy agency ASIO was infiltrated by the enemy - one of their spies turned and began working for the KGB, the Soviet Union’s feared spy agency. They became a mole.  For decades, the mole's identity remained a mystery and the damage they caused unknown. To uncover the truth, Joey sets out to find them.   Joey starts by meeting the main suspect who was arrested in the early 1990s and uncovers a much bigger story about secrets and power. Nest of Traitors: Declassified is a behind-the-scenes peak at what goes into making the podcast series with Joey Watson and Clair Weaver.  If you have any feedback or information about this story you can email  secretswekeep@sca.com.au or you could send Joey a letter GPO Box 22, Sydney NSW 2000. Credits: Creator and Host - Joey Watson  Supervising Producer - Jake Morcom  Executive Producer - Ellen Leabeater Fact check - Bonnie Lavelle Sound design - Nial Fernandes  Theme - Matt Nikolic With thanks to Clair Weaver, Simon Beaton, Alastair Kirkby, Emma Lancaster and Mike Williams  Melanie Withnall - Head of News and Information  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Three years ago, journalist Joey Watson was pulled into the ultimate spy mystery. During the Cold War, the Australian spy agency ASIO was infiltrated by a Soviet mole. For decades the mole's identity was buried and the damage they caused unknown. To uncover the truth, Joey sets out to find the mole. It’s a story about power, national secrets and how countries behave when they think no-one is watching. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Amelia Oberhardt introduces Season 2 of Secrets We Keep - Nest of Traitors. Hosted by Joey Watson, the season investigates another big Australian secret. Launching January 23.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Closed adoptions have affected many Australian families, and no one experience is the same.  In this episode, you'll hear how forced adoptions have affected people from a new perspective - two adoptees, and one father.  Lifeline: 13 11 14 Forced Adoption Support Service: 1800 21 03 13 List of organisations that can helpSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

If you or your family have been affected by forced adoption, it can be daunting to start your journey to find information about your history.  However support is available, and host Amelia Oberhardt speaks to two post adoption support services about how someone can navigate this journey.  Forced Adoption Support Service: 1800 21 03 13 List of organisations that can help Adopt Perspective Podcast  Featured:  Charlotte Smith - CEO of Vanish  Jo-Ann Sparrow - President of Jigsaw Queensland  Rachel Bell - Social Worker, Forced Adoption Support Service  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In the final episode of the season, Amelia Oberhardt reflects on what she's learnt in the series, and confronts one last stigma - her mother's alcohol dependency.  Support services: National Alcohol and Other Drug Hotline: 1800 250 015  Lifeline: 13 11 14 Forced Adoption Support Service: 1800 21 03 13 Featured: Jennifer McRae  Danae Witherow  Professor Dan Lubman - Turning Point  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In researching the series, Amelia Oberhardt heard a shocking story about a Queensland abortion raid that showed another side of how women were treated in Australia’s not too distant past.   Amelia finds out more about the options women had when faced with an unplanned pregnancy, the road to legalising abortion, and what happened one Monday morning in May 1985.  Featured:   Caroline de Costa – Professor of Obstetrics and Gynaecology of the College of Medicine at James Cook University Lorraine Smit – former counsellor and assistant, Children by Choice  Judy Petroeschevsky – former counsellor, educator and co-ordinator, Children by Choice David Grunmann – Queensland surgeon  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Leonie Pope was taken from her mother as a baby in 1972, after her mother was coerced into signing forms that gave away her rights. Leonie and her siblings were all taken from their family, and are part of the Stolen Generations.   Leonie was fostered and adopted to a Welsh family, and spent her childhood on the other side of the world, growing up in Wales. This is Leonie’s story of coming home.   You’ll also hear from Dr Mary Graham, about her work to change the approach of child welfare agencies in Queensland.   Gayaa Dhuwi: https://www.gayaadhuwi.org.au/if-you-need-help/  A spokesperson for the Mater Hospital said: 'Forced adoptions occurred in Queensland into the 1970s and were usually procured by social workers or departmental officers acting for the State Government, which issued a formal apology for the policy in 2012. Mater fully endorses the apology given by Catholic Health Australia in 2012 for the role that some Catholic hospitals and health services played in this widespread practice.’ The Mater didn't address questions about the removal of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children during the 1940s-1980s.'  Responding to questions about a redress scheme in Queensland for Stolen Generations survivors, a spokesperson for the Department of Treaty, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Partnerships, Communities and the Arts said: 'The Queensland Government recognises Aboriginal peoples and Torres Strait Islander peoples continue to experience the ongoing impacts of previous State and Commonwealth laws, policies and programs, including in relation to children. The Queensland Government is committed to improving the health and wellbeing outcomes of Aboriginal peoples and Torres Strait Islander peoples who experience disparity. We are doing this by restoring local decision-making authority and establishing place-based partnerships to ensure communities are leading the way as we work to Close the Gap.'See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

We’ve been inundated with responses and questions from you, with your stories from the forced adoption era.   Dr Susan Green is a psychologist and adopted person and speaks to Amelia Oberhardt to answer questions about the psychological impacts of forced adoption.   We’ll be back to our normal format next week.  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It’s a decade this year since Julia Gillard’s apology to those affected by forced adoption, but there’s still unfinished business. Now, it’s the adoptees picking up the baton and carrying on the fight for recognition, redress, and justice.   Amelia speaks to two adoptees – Jennifer McRae and Danae Witherow – about how being taken from their mothers has affected their lives, and their push for an inquiry in Western Australia. Shakira Ramsdell explains what's happening in Victoria, the one state in the process of setting up a redress scheme.  Forced Adoption Support Service: 1800 21 03 13 UPDATE: A spokesperson from the WA Department of Communities responded after deadline, writing 'formal integrated birth certificates [are] currently not available' but are being considered. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.