Overwatch members march in this year's Auckland Pride Parade The support group for glbti employees of the NZ Defence Force has won the top award in this year's ANZ and EEO Trust Diversity Awards. The OverWatch group won both the Diversity section of the annjual awards and the Supreme overall award. Approved by the top brass in 2011 and established in 2012, OverWatch provides resources for personnel for example those who are questioning their own sexuality and are seeking advice. “It also educates Defence Force leaders about different lifestyles to increase understanding throughout the armed forces," says EEO Trust chief executive Beverley Cassidy-MacKenzie. Members of the group marched in uniform in this year's inaugural Auckland Pride parade. Meanwhile, controversy still swirls around the death of Corporal Dougie Hughes who took his life in Afghanistan last year after being spurned by another soldier in a confrontation convened by a more senior officer. A coroner who is an opponent of equality for glbti people closed the book on an enquiry into Hughes' death, however this decision is now being reviewed by the Solicitor General.
Credit: GayNZ.com Daily News staff
First published: Friday, 30th August 2013 - 11:58am