Openly-gay Labour MP Charles Chauvel will call for the abolition of the ‘homosexual panic defence' at a ‘Safe On our Streets' rally in Wellington this Sunday. The Homosexual Panic Defence allows a murder defendant to claim that he was the object of sexual advances by the victim, and found these advances so offensive that he was driven to murder in a psychotic state. If the defence is accepted, the murder charge is reduced to manslaughter. Homosexual Panic Defence has been successfully used in New Zealand dozens of times. “In New Zealand we pride on giving everyone a fair go. But the existence of the Homosexual Panic Defence is plainly unfair to Gay, Lesbian Bisexual and Transgender Kiwis.” said Charles Chauvel recently. “It is an archaic provision and has no place in our modern legal system.” The Safe On our Streets rally will include speakers Tony Simpson, Social Historian and senior public servant; Claudia McKay of Agenda, a transgender group; and Maddie Drew from UniQ at Victoria University. A new website, AllOurRights.co.nz, will be launched to provide a resource for future actions. SOS organizers are Ronald Nelson, director of the recent play ‘Corner 4 AM Ref: Safe on our Streets (m)