Police Urge Commission To Ignore ‘trivia' (Press, 20 May 1980)

On 20 May 1980, the Police Association in New Zealand urged the Human Rights Commission to focus on significant social challenges faced by single women and homosexuals, rather than trivial matters. Dr R. A. Moodie, the secretary of the Association, expressed concern over the enforcement of current laws regarding indecent acts between consenting males. He noted that in Auckland, tensions had escalated due to police obligations to enforce these homosexuality laws, which often led to perceptions of persecution. Dr Moodie proposed that the Human Rights Commissioner, Mr P. J. Downey, consider modifying the laws regarding indecent acts between consenting adults and introducing a clear age of consent. However, he argued that sodomy laws should remain unchanged. This change, he suggested, would alleviate law enforcement issues in relation to harmless private consensual activities and reduce prosecutions of homosexuals, except in cases where acts occurred in public. Assistant Commissioner B. W. Gibson from Police National Headquarters stated that there had been no complaints from police officers regarding homosexuality laws. He emphasised that if officers felt dissatisfied with any law, they could bring their concerns to the attention of police leadership. Should these issues be deemed significant, submissions could then be made to the Minister of Police, Mr Gill. Furthermore, Dr Moodie highlighted the lack of action from the Human Rights Commission regarding discrimination against single individuals, particularly women. He pointed out that a year earlier, the Commission had been asked to investigate the case of a single female police officer on transfer, who faced difficulties securing a Housing Corporation loan and first mortgage finance due to her status as a single woman. Dr Moodie lamented that being a single woman placed one at a considerable disadvantage when seeking mortgage finance. In response, Mr Downey stated that he preferred not to engage in public controversy with Dr Moodie and encouraged him to discuss the matter directly with him. Prime Minister Mr Muldoon also weighed in, expressing his dissatisfaction with some of the absurd issues the Commission was tasked with addressing and indicated that legislative amendments would be necessary.

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