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1998 Introduction Expected

Australian Anti-Bias Law Will Include TGs

By the Australian Associated Press
Contributed by Elizabeth Parker


CANBERRA
December 2, 1997

Laws outlawing discrimination on the basis of sexuality would be introduced into parliament next year, the Australian Democrats announced today.

The Democrat's Sexuality and Gender Discrimination Bill would be a refined version of the Sexuality Discrimination Bill introduced two years ago by then Senator Sid Spindler, and referred to the Senate Legal and Constitutional References Committee last May.

Victorian Democrat Senator Lyn Allison said in a statement the new legislation would include recommendations from the subsequent committee report, tabled in parliament today. Senator Allison said the new bill would ensure that no Australians were discriminated against in the key areas of superannuation, insurance, employment, education, industrial relations or the provision of goods and services.

"Hysteria and prejudice often accompanies these issues but in the end what we've put forward is a simple and fair proposition - Australians shouldn't be discriminated against on the basis of their sexuality," Senator Allison said in the statement.

The committee report listed 32 recommendations to amend the 1995 bill, including broadening the discrimination provisions to include harassment of homosexual and transgender individuals, including transsexuals, and their partners or of people perceived as homosexual or transgender.

The committee proposed a new gender-neutral definition of a domestic partnership or relationship, to accomodate for same-sex couples, and that all couples achieve legal recognition under the Commonwealth.

Rather than directly recommend changes to existing legislation though, the committee called for a working group to be set up to review all Commonwealth legislation.

The working party would give priority to social security, taxation, superannuation, health and family services and family law matters legislation with the view to amend it in line with the new sexuality discrimination bill.

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