Page 1604 - Week 08 - Thursday, 28 September 1989
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forms overseas as well as in this country, and I have even heard senior and respected politicians argue that some of these offences should be decriminalised. I imagine issues of that kind will be raised in this inquiry and I look forward to that.
I know that members of the Social Policy Committee are interested in these areas. Mr Moore is not, of course, a member of the Standing Committee on Social Policy at present but, if the Opposition's amendment were accepted, I would be very happy to consider attaching Mr Moore to it for the purpose of this particular inquiry. So Mr Moore's membership is not a problem as far as we are concerned.
I commend the amendments to the Assembly and hope that we can conduct this inquiry in a way which fits in better with the existing inquiries.
Amendments negatived.
MR BERRY (Minister for Community Services and Health) (11.35): I do not intend to take up much time on this matter. However, it is pleasing that such an important issue has been raised by the Residents Rally party for public consultation and I commend that party for its new-found support of this important function of the Assembly. But I must say at the outset that this issue is a challenge for any government because of the impact that it has on the community in all sorts of areas and, like Mr Humphries, I shall not seek to go into the detail of the issue of AIDS and HIV. Rather, I will confine myself to expressing support for the matter to be considered in a consultative way by an organ of this institution.
I think one of the features of the debate on AIDS and HIV has been the growing up of the community in its approach to this horrific problem, and I think it will grow further away from the period when victim bashing was very fashionable in the area of defence against these sorts of diseases.
On the issue of drugs, many would say that the war against drugs has been lost, but I think that the war is really in its infancy. There will need to be a lot more work in that area. I am not sure that the ACT will form the vanguard of it, but I am sure that an appropriately formed committee, in close consultation with the community, will lead us to a stronger position in the fight against this dreadful disease.
Mr Speaker, I seek to move an amendment to the motion moved by Mr Moore. I move:
Omit "AIDS", wherever occurring, substitute "HIV".
Amendment agreed to.
Motion, as amended, agreed to.
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