Wed 29 Sep 2010 In: International News View at Wayback View at NDHA
The Australian Green Party has made good on its promise to reintroduce the Marriage Equality Bill into Parliament. Greens spokeswoman on Sexuality and Gender Identity Senator Sarah Hanson-Young has done so today. Australian Marriage Equality is delighted with the move, with National Convener Alex Greenwich reiterating the organisation's call for a conscience vote. "We support a conscience vote on marriage equality because MPs should be free to represent the views of the 60% of Australians who support this reform", Greenwich says. "Sarah Hanson-Young's Bill is a simple and straight-forward solution to those discriminatory sections of the Marriage Act which ban same-sex partners from officially declaring their love." "Surely members of the Federal Labour and Liberal Parties have more important things to do than stop same-sex partners committing to each other." Greenwich has also welcomed the support of Sydney Lord Mayor, and the State Parliament Member for Sydney Clover Moore, who has written on behalf of Sydney to Prime Minister Julia Gillard and Opposition Leader Tony Abbott calling for a conscience vote. "Exclusion of same-sex couples from marriage is inconsistent with the views of the Australian community, and undermines steps toward equal treatment of same sex relationships. Treating same-sex couples as lesser citizens supports intolerance and homophobic abuse and violence... I ask that you provide for a conscience vote on legislation that would allow same sex couples to marry," she has written. This is the second time the Green's Marriage Equality Bill has been introduced. In 2009, following a Senate inquiry into the Bill, it was voted down by both major parties. Neither major party allowed a conscience vote in 2009 and there were 26 Senators absent, who, had they attended, would have been forced to vote against the Bill.
Credit: GayNZ.com Daily News staff
First published: Wednesday, 29th September 2010 - 3:41pm