A bill designed to "clarify" the definition of marriage is a smokescreen which tries to undermine laws passed last year which removed discrimination against same-sex couples, says the Campaign for Civil Unions. The Marriage (Gender Clarification) Bill, sponsored by United Future MP Gordon Copeland, will have its first reading in Parliament this Wednesday. It seeks to amend the Marriage and Bill of Rights Acts by defining marriage as "between one man and one woman" and allowing discrimination in favour of married couples over others, including those in civil unions. The Campaign for Civil Unions says Copeland is an extremist MP promoting discriminatory legislation, less than a year after the passage of the Civil Union Act. "The amendment to the Marriage Act merely restates the existing legal reality and is, therefore, unnecessary. It is a shame that some of our MPs find it necessary to restate and reinforce discriminatory law," says spokesperson Jeremy Lambert. "However, it is the second part of the bill that is absolutely unacceptable. Freedom from discrimination is one of the cornerstones of our society and the country has reinforced this principle in our Bill of Rights." Wednesday's vote on the Marriage (Gender Clarification) Bill is a second bite of the cherry for the largely Christian party United Future. A private members bill, it was first put up for debate in May this year by another one of its MPs, Larry Baldock. Baldock withdrew it from the order paper when he realised he didn't have the numbers to pass it, and subsequently lost his seat in September's election. The bill was still live, however, and was picked up by Copeland. "You would have thought the bill's supporters might have learnt a thing or two about the dangers of promoting discrimination in a forward-focused democracy," Lambert says. "The extensive debate around Civil Unions last year resulted in good law that treats all New Zealanders fairly. The promoters of this bill are merely attempting to make same-sex couples second-class citizens." It is unclear at this stage whether Parliament's two major parties, Labour and National, will be taking a party position on the bill, or allowing a conscience vote. It is understood they are reviewing the positions they were to take in May's planned vote, which would have seen Labour voting against the bill, and all of National supporting it.
Credit: GayNZ.com News Staff
First published: Monday, 5th December 2005 - 12:00pm