But on November 16, some of the pain Mr Carter has been carrying for more than 40 years will be dulled when Prime Minister Kevin Rudd makes a formal apology on behalf of all Australians.

During his time in various orphanages and homes, Mr Carter says he was abused and neglected by authorities.

Now 60 and living in Trangie, Mr Carter says he doesn’t blame the current Government for what he and more than 500,000 other young Australians went through, but admits he appreciates the gesture that will be made in a bipartisan sitting of Parliament on Monday week.

“It was the previous governments and the churches that are responsible,” he said.

“I am just so glad that this Government is making an apology and I really support it.

“They are the only government that have finally got the guts to stand up.”

Mr Carter’s mother passed away when he was just 18 months old, so when his father was deemed unfit to look after him and his six siblings, they were all institutionalised.

Growing up in various orphanages around the country until the age of 18, Mr Carter said he knew nothing else.

“I spent time in Anolgra Boys Home, run by the Church of England, time in a Salvation Army-run orphanage, and I had multiple stays in Wilston and also in Westbrook. These places were all in Queensland,” he said.

“They moved me around a lot because they said that I acted up a lot.

“I didn’t know how to act and what did they expect? I was bashed, raped and punished terribly in every place I went.”

According to the Minister for Families, Housing, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs Jenny Macklin the apology reflects the Government’s determination that these terrible practices will never be repeated.

“Many former child migrants and other children who were in institutions, their families and the wider community have suffered from a system that did not adequately provide for, or protect, children in its care,” she said.