Kevin Hague on Historic Convictions

In this podcast interview, recorded on September 6, 2016, in Wellington, Aotearoa New Zealand, Green Party MP Kevin Hague discusses the topic of historic convictions for consensual homosexual activity. The conversation highlights efforts to address the legacy of legal discrimination faced by individuals prior to the Homosexual Law Reform Act of 1986. Hague speaks of a petition initiated by Wiremu Demchick, which garnered 2,111 signatures, advocating for the government to issue an apology and reverse convictions.

During their time as an openly gay MP, Hague, who's been active in Parliament since 2008, has been involved in multiple human rights reforms including the push for marriage equality. Hague elucidates upon the significant task of identifying and rectifying wrongful convictions. The complexity lies in the fact that many offenses, like 'indecent behavior', were used for various acts, some of which would still be considered criminal today, thus necessitating a detailed review of each case.

The interview delves into resistance faced by Hague in attempting to rectify these convictions. Justice Minister Amy Adams had expressed three main concerns: the legitimacy of the law at the time of convictions, the potential for this to set a precedent for other overturned laws, and practical challenges in differentiating between convictions that would still be considered crimes today. Hague counters these concerns by pointing out the intrinsic injustice of laws that required individuals to act against their nature and parallels with rectifications of past injustices, such as in the Nuremberg trials.

Hague outlines that the petition seeks formal acknowledgment of the wrongfulness of past convictions and their legislative erasure. Hague argues for an outright quashing of convictions as opposed to a pardon, given that those convicted did nothing wrong by today's moral standards.

The abstraction from the formal apology is seen as an important gesture, though the actual reversal of convictions has been impacted by the men's willingness to have their cases revisited, with some seeing their past convictions as a badge of honor. Hague touches on the impacts of these convictions on the lives of the convicted, including limitations on travel and employment opportunities that persist due to such records. There was some resistance to the movement from conservative groups and churches, but mostly the initiative has been met with positive reception.

Looking to the international context, Hague notes that other countries like the UK have taken similar steps to right historical wrongs, and feels that with the passage of the 30th anniversary of the Homosexual Law Reform Act, the time is right for New Zealand to do the same. Hague encourages affected individuals and their families to share their stories with the select committee processing the petition.

Lastly, Hague reflects on their time in Parliament, with particular pride in the work on the Pike River disaster and contribution to the adoption of the Marriage Equality Law, working alongside politicians across parties for the betterment of human rights.

This summary is created using Generative AI. Although it is based on the recording's transcription, it may contain errors or omissions. Click here to learn more about how this summary was created.

Kevin Hague

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