Page 83 - Week 01 - Wednesday, 14 February 1990
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It said that X-rated movies are films of an erotic nature. The word "erotic" was highlighted in capital letters, obviously for the interviewer to give it emphasis. The word "erotic" does not correctly apply to pornographic videos. The Oxford Dictionary's original meaning is that erotic concerns love and sexual passion. Pornography means prostitution which is the selling of people's bodies and the pleasure to be had from them. Pornography is any depiction of this with the same exploitive intent.
Mr Moore: According to Stevenson's definition.
MR STEVENSON: I suggest that, according to the Oxford Dictionary, if the word, "pornography", which better fits, was used, the numbers of people against pornographic videos would have been increased still further. Indeed, this Roy Morgan gallup poll contained a lie, also to educate people. It said:
The A.C.T. Government has recently introduced a special licensing fee and a tax on those who sell X-rated non-violent erotic movies and videos.
That, as we all know in this Assembly, is a lie. That did not happen. Then it went on to ask the question, having set up the person being interviewed:
Do you support that Government licensing fee and tax or not?
The poll was a farce.
People have spoken about censorship. There have been cries by an absolute minority that the Bill is censorship. Well, of course, it is censorship. When it is passed, it will indeed censor and ban X-rated videos from Canberra and from Australia. What the people that cry "censorship" do not say is that they agree with censorship. They absolutely agree with censorship. They agree that child pornography - the use of young children in pornographic videos - should be censored. They agree that murder on videos should be censored. They agree that bestiality should be censored. So we are not talking about whether or not we have censorship. We all agree, in Canberra and Australia, unless there are some depraved people that do not, that there should be censorship. What we are talking about in our society is what we censor.
I suggest that we have to look as to what type of society we want to live in, and indeed, the people of that society should have a valid input into making that determination. Our poll in the ACT showed that 50 per cent of people want the X-rated videos banned; 25 per cent would allow them; and 25 per cent were uncommitted. With that poll, we did not use any educative information beforehand, we just asked the simple question. It was of over 150 people. It was out at the Weston Creek Festival and I would allow perhaps
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