Page 4790 - Week 13 - Wednesday, 11 November 2009
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in acknowledging that there is a legitimate place for all couples in society and making a place for them. It is about the respect, love and shared commitment that all couples have, and allowing for that to be publicly demonstrated, formalised and celebrated.
Before concluding, I feel I must comment on some of the topics raised in the debate today, particularly those raised by Mrs Dunne. The question has been: “Well, why try a third time? This has been knocked back by the federal government twice already.” The fact that it has been knocked back twice already is not a good reason to not keep trying. Nothing ever happens if you do not keep striving for change. Only those who strive for change achieve change.
The Greens felt that now was the right time to make another attempt because the world has moved on. Unlike the Liberal Party, the world has moved on. There is an acceptance in Australian society that we should have equality for all couples who want to enter into a loving and committed relationship, and that is why we should keep striving. We should not be cowed by the federal government; we should do what is the right thing, and this is the right thing to do. That is why we should keep striving to do it.
The other comment I would like to touch on is this observation: “The problem with this act is that it mimics marriage.” I do not think that is a very substantive basis on which to come in here and oppose this legislation that seeks to end discrimination. I have not heard one good reason why mimicking marriage is a problem. I have not heard one statement of principle from the Liberal Party as to why that should not be the case. I would hope that, somewhere down the line, we can see a change of position, a commitment to ending discrimination, a commitment to moving forward in this country.
I mentioned earlier the ongoing campaign for marriage equality. I would like to reiterate my support for that campaign. The Greens do not see the provisions we are passing today as full marriage equality but as a step along the road in a seemingly long campaign for equal rights for all in forming loving relationships. Full marriage equality will only occur when the federal government acknowledge that their current model of marriage is discriminatory and when the federal Marriage Act is changed. I will speak about this further when we come to the detail stage and discuss the amendments.
We in the ACT community who have worked for this change should be confident that that federal change can happen. There is an opportunity for it to happen. But I think today we should take the opportunity afforded by this bill to publicly celebrate love and have a renewed focus on working to advance equal rights for all. I thank members for their support for this bill and I look forward to the discussion about the amendments.
Question put:
That this bill be agreed to in principle.
The Assembly voted—
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