Alec Kruger

Alec (Bumbolili) Kruger (24 December 1924 – 20 February 2015 ) was a member of the Stolen Generations and one of the plaintiffs who unsuccessfully sought compensation from the government in Kruger v Commonwealth in the High Court of Australia.

Early life

Kruger was born on the banks of the Katherine River at a place called Donkey Camp, the son of Franz (Frank) Kruger and Yrambul Nungarai a Mudburra woman, Kruger is one of their two children and the couple stayed together until Frank's death in 1938.

No specific records were kept but it appears that Kruger was taken from his family in mid-1928, alongside his sister Gladys, as a toddler and they were placed in the Kahlin Compound in Darwin. For Yrambul this is not the first time she had had children taken away from her and, despite knowing it was useless, she still followed the children to Darwin and stood outside the gates every day until, finally, she had to return home and to her remaining children (who were not take away as their father was Mudburra). and, from all accounts, it was a much better place then Kahlin. However, he was separated from his sisters and would not see them again until the end of World War II. He believed that, in the army, he would get to fight for his country and earn good money (equal pay).

Kruger was 17 but he told the recruiters that he was 18 and he was placed in the Aboriginal Unit and mostly worked loading trucks. which became known as the Stolen Generation Case. In this case, the High Court rejected a challenge to the validity of legislation applying to the Northern Territory, namely the Aboriginals Ordinance 1918, between 1918–1957.

In the wake of this decision the Stolen Generation Association was established in Alice Springs and Kruger was a part of the management committee.

Death Kruger died 20 February 2015.