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Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 2002 Week 3 Hansard (6 March) . . Page.. 670 ..

MR STANHOPE (continuing):

Tasmania in relation to the discrimination which they suffered as a result of the operation of the Tasmanian criminal code some years ago.

I have always reflected with some pleasure and pride on the fact that I was a member of the staff of the then federal Attorney-General, Michael Lavarch, who facilitated that process and was responsible ultimately for overturning the Tasmanian laws, much to the chagrin of Tasmania, by introducing amendments the Commonwealth was able to make and implement as a result of our commitment to international instruments. That is a very good and moot example of the importance of instruments such as these.

The optional protocol to the convention acknowledges that women's rights are taken as seriously as other human rights, such as those relating to race, torture and political participation. Australia's ratification of the optional protocol would support making governments more accountable under the convention than the previous system of self-assessment and reporting. My government strongly supports the Beijing platform for action, which calls for the development of a complaints mechanism for the convention.

Mainstream human rights instruments such as the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the convention against torture, the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination all have complaints or inquiry mechanisms. This convention, which specifically covers women's human rights needs, requires a similar avenue of redress if the convention is breached.

The government strongly supports the right of all women to participate equally in shaping all aspects of society, free from discrimination on the basis of gender. We are committed to ensuring that all women have the right to economic independence and are given opportunities to participate in, and are enabled to share in, the control of the institutions and relationships that affect their lives.

As ACT Minister for Women, I will continue to support the rights of women to control their own bodies, have access to adequately funded services and education programs, have protection from all forms of violence and have support for human rights across the board.

It is quite timely that this motion should be considered in the Assembly in the lead-up to International Women's Day. We are also celebrating Women's History Month, a month which highlights yet another area where the contribution and value of women in our society have not been given equal recognition. I look to the Assembly and the ACT community to support this motion and the important principles it seeks to promote.

In conclusion, I foreshadow that the government will not support the amendment circulated by Mrs Cross. We see it as an unnecessary watering down of the strong message that Ms Dundas' motion sends-that this Assembly does support the ratification of the optional protocol and does not believe that there is any point in simply seeking the Commonwealth government's explanation as to why it has not yet deemed it appropriate to ratify the optional protocol. I think we all know what the real reasons for the non-ratification of the optional protocol are.

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