Support queer rights in Western Australia

[ June 18, 2007: If you support the right of gay/lesbian couples to adopt, PLEASE email/write to The West in support of Michael Bennett, who wrote the excellent story on page 9 of today's West. Recently a West editorial railed against gay adoption and argued that a gay relationship was essentially not equal to a hetero one: email here: letters@wanews.com.au - Or online, Have Your Say... Please write in supporting gay adoption (if you do in fact support it). Thank you ]

JUNE 19, 2007 - Last week Western Australian’s first adoption by a same-sex couple has been approved more than four years after the Gallop Labor Government overturned laws discriminating against homosexual citizens. The male couple was first approved to adopt three years ago and the relinquishing mother has consented to the adoption.

The law reforms in 2002 amended the Act to end discrimination on the grounds of the gender of couples seeking to adopt.

The Adoption Act is exempt from the provisions of the Equal Opportunity Act, however, and a relinquishing parent has the right to discriminate against potential adopting parents on grounds including gender and religion.

Meanwhile Pride Western Australia Incorporated today announced that local lesbian activists Kelly and Sam Pilgrim Byrne would become Pride's first co-patrons. Kelly and Sam say, "Gay parenting isn't new - our families have existed for decades," they said. "Our goal as Pride Patrons is to draw attention to this fact and to let people know that good parenting is not defined by sexuality and that our children are growing up with exactly the same outcomes as children of heterosexuals.

"We want LGBT families to be confident of their parenting abilities and proud of their beautiful children. We want our community's children to know that they are not alone in having LGBT mothers and fathers and that they are cherished, loved and very special." After spending three and a half years trying to conceive, Kelly and Sam are expecting their first child, with Sam more than six months pregnant.

The 2007 Pride Festival will commence with the City of Perth Pride Fairday in Northbridge's Russell Square on Sunday 30 September, run throughout October with a number of arts and community events, before concluding with the Pride Parade through the streets of Northbridge.

Australian Greens Senator Kerry Nettle says the Labor Party's support for same sex couples appears to have taken a further backward step after they decided to vote with the Government to oppose a Greens' motion in the Senate in support of same sex rights to access IVF and adoption.

"After the tragedy of the ALP supporting the Howard Government's ban on same sex marriage, the ALP's credibility in this area is looking even more shaky", Senator Nettle said. The Prime Minister has publicly objected to same-sex relationships.

Same-sex marriage is not recognised under Australian federal law. Under section 51(xxi) [1] of the Australian Constitution, the Parliament of Australia is vested with the powers to make laws with respect to marriage. Until 2004 the Marriage Act 1961 did not define marriage, but the common law definition of marriage as "a union between a man and a woman" was applied by Australian courts and was taken to be "settled law."

On May 27, 2004, Federal Attorney-General, Philip Ruddock, introduced the Marriage Legislation Amendment Bill, intending to incorporate the common law definition of marriage into the Marriage Act and the Family Law Act. In June 2004, the bill passed the House of Representatives. On August 13, 2004, the Senate passed the amendment by 38 votes to 6.

"..Marriage means the union of a man and a woman to the exclusion of all others, voluntarily entered into for life. Certain unions are not marriages. A union solemnised in a foreign country between: (a) a man and another man; or (b) a woman and another woman; must not be recognised as a marriage in Australia."

In Australia, civil celebrants conduct commitment ceremonies so that same-sex couples can participate in a ceremony to acknowledge their love and partnership. The federal government however has introduced a registration system whereby prospective celebrants must undergo Government-approved, accredited training and meet specific criteria set by the Attorney-General's Department to be declared a "fit and proper person" to hold the office of "marriage celebrant".

Under the new rules a registered celebrant is not permitted to conduct commitment ceremonies for same-sex couples.

SOURCES:
First gay adoption something to be proud of - GAYinWA
Gay WA couple granted adoption - Perth Indymedia
Pride names patrons and theme for 2007 Festival - GAYinWA
Same-sex marriage in Australia - Wikipedia
Inquiry into Discrimination against People in Same-Sex Relationships
Marriage Amendment Bill 2004

Local Government applaud WA Prostitution laws

February 17, 2007: The Local Government Association says the Western Australian Government has struck the right balance with its proposed new prostitution laws. The state government plans to decriminalise prostitution as part of a bid to regulate the industry. WA Attorney-General Jim McGinty says he will introduce legislation into state parliament this year which would allow brothels to operate legally...
Friday, February 16, 2007: The Local Government Association says the Western Australian Government has struck the right balance with its proposed new prostitution laws. Attorney-General Jim McGinty is preparing legislation to decriminalise and regulate the industry, saying the current laws are a mess.

The new arrangements would introduce regular health and safety checks for sex workers. The association's Bill Mitchell says the new laws will clarify the role of local government in controlling the location of brothels, without placing too much onus on brothel operators.

"It's not that proscriptive as in other states as to force the industry underground," he said. "Our recent experience with eastern states legislation is that very few brothels actually applied for licensing, it was all too hard and it forced the industry underground and that's exactly what we don't want."

Brothels in Western Australia will be able to operate legally under proposed new laws to be introduced into State Parliament this year. Attorney General and Health Minister Jim McGinty said the State Government planned to decriminalise and regulate the world’s oldest profession in order to protect the health and safety of sex workers and provide clarity for police.

“It is time we sorted out the prostitution laws in WA to deal properly with the sex industry, which has been a reality of life for a long, long time,” Mr McGinty said. The Attorney General said the State Government had begun drafting legislation based on the recommendations of the Prostitution Law Reform Working Group, which had studied prostitution legislation in other Australian States and New Zealand.

The working group recommended adopting a minimalist, decriminalised model, where approved operators and managers of brothels and escort agencies would be regulated under a certification system run by the Department of Racing, Gaming and Liquor.

All operators and managers would need to be of good character to be certified and not have any serious convictions or charges pending related to sexual crimes, organised crime, drugs or violence.

Operator/manager certificates would be required for premises with two or more sex workers and certification would need to be renewed annually. Penalties would apply for brothels found operating without being certified. Brothels would then be subject to local government planning approvals and controls which governed the operation of other businesses.

“This will mean that for the first time, local councils and the WA Planning Commission can control where brothels are located and ensure they are not operating in inappropriate areas,” Mr McGinty said.

The working group recommended that new prostitution legislation also include:

- minimum health and safety requirements for sex workers;
- creating a new offence for sex workers and clients who engage in sexual activities while infected with a sexually transmissible infection or blood-borne virus;
- provisions to protect children from being involved in prostitution and from being exploited in relation to prostitution;
- requiring brothel and escort agency operators to employ sex workers under contracts of service; and
- giving police the power to enter brothels to ensure that all operators are certified.

Under current laws, prostitution in itself is not prohibited but it is illegal to manage a brothel and live off the earnings of prostitution.

Streetwalking and kerb crawling are also offences and will remain illegal under the new laws. “The current prostitution laws are a mess and we have brothels operating the length and breadth of the State without any proper checks or balances,” Mr McGinty said.

“The Police Royal Commission report of 2004 found that the lack of clear prostitution legislation also created a high risk for police corruption and although there was no specific evidence of wrongdoing, we need to remove that temptation.”

The working group recommended that existing brothels be automatically certified unless they were not well-managed or were causing problems in the neighbourhood. The Attorney General said the working group’s recommendations would enable the State Government to develop laws that would be acceptable to the Parliament after the Prostitution Control Bill 2003 failed to receive majority support in the Legislative Council.

The working group, which was established in September 2006, consulted with numerous stakeholders including representatives from the sex industry, local government, public health groups, churches and legal bodies. The working group comprised Parliamentary Secretary to the Health Minister, Sue Ellery; Labor MLA John Hyde; Greens MLC Giz Watson; Health Department sexual health program director Lisa Bastion; Detective Superintendent Kim Porter from Western Australia Police; and Caroline Wright from the Office of the Attorney General.

SOURCES:
Media Release: New laws to put on the red light - McGinty
ABC - LGA praises McGinty's proposed prostitution laws
The Australian: State to decriminalise brothels