Law On Homosexuals Will Be Unchanged (Press, 18 February 1981)

On 18 February 1981, New Zealand's Minister of Justice, Mr McLay, announced that the Government would not amend the law to make discrimination against homosexuals illegal. This decision came after a recommendation from the Human Rights Commission which suggested that "sexual orientation" should not be included in the Human Rights Commission Act as a ground for discrimination. The commission had issued a report to Prime Minister Mr Muldoon following appeals from the National Gay Rights Coalition, which sought the inclusion of sexual orientation in the act. In addition to seeking legal recognition to prevent discrimination, the coalition had also proposed that the commission recommend reviewing sections of the Crimes Act related to sexual crimes, so that the laws would no longer differentiate between males and females. However, the Government rejected this recommendation as well. Mr McLay stated that the issue of homosexual law reform is a contentious one and primarily a matter of social policy, asserting that the Government does not view it simply as a technical legal issue. He pointed out that the Criminal Law Reform Committee is not tasked with advising on controversial social policy issues, which makes the current matter inappropriate for such a body. He emphasised that this subject is better suited for parliamentary discussion rather than being confined to the technical focus of law reform.

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