Australia praises institutions returning indigenous remains
Updated
Australia's Indigenous Affairs Minister Jenny Macklin has praised major international cultural institutions that are prepared to return Aboriginal ancestral remains.
The Smithsonian Institute in Washington DC has agreed to release the remains of 33 Indigenous people that were taken from Australia in the 1940s.
It follows the return of remains from several museums and institutions in the United Kingdom.
Ms Macklin says a group of Aboriginal people from the Northern Territory left Australia this morning headed for the United States to reclaim the remains.
"These are remains from 33 indigenous Australians that were taken to the United States and the traditional owners who are going to collect them believe the remains may include their grandmother so it is a very significant collection."
