LGBT rights in New South Wales
Encyclopedia
Activism and decriminalization
The Campaign Against Moral Persecution, also known as C.A.M.P., was founded in SydneySydney
Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...
in September 1970 and was one of Australia's fist gay rights organisations. C.A.M.P. raised the profile and acceptance of Australia's gay and lesbian communities.
On 24 June 1978 gay rights activists in Sydney
Sydney
Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...
staged a morning protest march and commemoration of the Stonewall Riots
Stonewall riots
The Stonewall riots were a series of spontaneous, violent demonstrations against a police raid that took place in the early morning hours of June 28, 1969, at the Stonewall Inn, in the Greenwich Village neighborhood of New York City...
which took place in New York
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
in June 1969. Although the organisers had obtained permission, this was revoked, and the march was broken up by the police. Fifty-three of the marchers were arrested. Although most charges were eventually dropped, the Sydney Morning Herald published the names of those arrested in full, leading to many people being outed
Outing
Outing is the act of disclosing a gay, lesbian, bisexual or transgender person's true sexual orientation or gender identity without that person's consent. Outing gives rise to issues of privacy, choice, hypocrisy, and harm in addition to sparking debate on what constitutes common good in efforts...
to their friends and places of employment, and many of those arrested lost their jobs as homosexuality
Homosexuality
Homosexuality is romantic or sexual attraction or behavior between members of the same sex or gender. As a sexual orientation, homosexuality refers to "an enduring pattern of or disposition to experience sexual, affectional, or romantic attractions" primarily or exclusively to people of the same...
was a crime in New South Wales
New South Wales
New South Wales is a state of :Australia, located in the east of the country. It is bordered by Queensland, Victoria and South Australia to the north, south and west respectively. To the east, the state is bordered by the Tasman Sea, which forms part of the Pacific Ocean. New South Wales...
until 1984. The event was held each year thereafter and is now known as the Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras
Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras
The Sydney Mardi Gras is an annual LGBTQI pride parade and festival in Sydney, Australia, and draws in thousands of visitors from around Australia and overseas...
which celebrated its 30th anniversary in 2008.
New South Wales legalised male homosexuality in 1984 with an unequal age of consent of 18 (it is 16 for heterosexual and lesbian couples). In 2003, 19 years later the New South Wales Government equalised the age of consent to 16 under the Crimes Act 1900.
Discrimination protections
In 1977, the Anti-Discrimination Act 1977Anti-Discrimination Act 1977
The Anti-Discrimination Act 1977 is an Act of the NSW Parliament, relating to discrimination in employment, the public education system, delivery of goods and services, and other services such as banking, health care, property and night clubs....
which prohibits discrimination in places of work, the public education system, delivery of goods and services, and other services such as banking, health care, property and night clubs was passed in New South Wales
New South Wales
New South Wales is a state of :Australia, located in the east of the country. It is bordered by Queensland, Victoria and South Australia to the north, south and west respectively. To the east, the state is bordered by the Tasman Sea, which forms part of the Pacific Ocean. New South Wales...
. Among other things, it covers homosexuality, marital or domestic status, transgender status, as well as HIV/AIDS status. Homosexuality was added in 1983, vilification of certain groups was added in 1993, transgender status and HIV/AIDS status (under disability) was added in 1996 and then in 2008, marital or domestic status was added.
De facto couples
In 1999, the Property (Relationships) Legislation Amendment Act was introduced, which recognised same-sex couples in a variety of legislation, including the Workers Compensation Act, the Victims Compensation Act and the Criminal Procedure Act. Further rights were given in 2002 through the Miscellaneous Acts Amendment (Relationships) ActOn 6 September 1999, New South Wales Attorney General
New South Wales Attorney-General's Department
The New South Wales Department of Attorney General and Justice, a department of the New South Wales Government, is responsibile for the administration and development of a just and equitable legal system of courts, tribunals, laws and other mechanisms that further the principles of justice in New...
Hon J. W. Shaw QC MLC requested the Law Reform Commission of New South Wales
Law Reform Commission of New South Wales
The New South Wales Law Reform Commission is a commission to investigate, review and advise on the reform of the law in New South Wales, a state of Australia. The present commission came into existence on 25 September 1967 although it had been administratively established previously in 1966...
to inquire into Relationships and the Law. The inquiry, which followed new relationship and property laws at the time, also looked at children of same-sex couples and recognition of their relationship with both parents. The commission's report on relationships was very extensive, included many recommendations and took the LRC itself seven years to complete. The report was handed to the previous NSW Attorney-General in June 2006. New South Wales Attorney General John Hatzistergos
John Hatzistergos
John Hatzistergos is a former Australian politician who was a Member of the New South Wales Legislative Council representing the Australian Labor Party between 1999 and 2011...
blocked access to the report for two years on the grounds he would table it in parliament
Parliament of New South Wales
The Parliament of New South Wales, located in Parliament House on Macquarie Street, Sydney, is the main legislative body in the Australian state of New South Wales . It is a bicameral parliament elected by the people of the state in general elections. The parliament shares law making powers with...
sometime in the future. Previous reports by the commission have recommended stepparent adoption provisions to include same-sex de facto relationships.
The City of Sydney
City of Sydney
The City of Sydney is the Local Government Area covering the Sydney central business district and surrounding inner city suburbs of the greater metropolitan area of Sydney, Australia...
created a Relationships Declaration Program
City of Sydney Relationships Declaration
In July 2004, the City of Sydney Council, led by Lord Mayor Clover Moore, introduced a re-working of the former South Sydney Council's Partnership Registration scheme, renaming it the City of Sydney Relationship Declaration Program...
in 2005 available for all couples offering limited legal recognition. While making a relationship declaration does not confer legal rights in the way marriage does, it may be used to demonstrate the existence of a de facto relationship within the meaning of the NSW Property (Relationships) Act 1984 and other legislation.
On 4 June 2008, the New South Wales Parliament passed the Miscellaneous Acts Amendment (Same Sex Relationships) Bill 2008 which recognises co-mothers as legal parents of children born through donor insemination, provides birth certificates allowing both mums to be recognised, creates amendments to 57 pieces of NSW legislation to ensure de facto couples, including same-sex couples, are treated equally with married couples, and creates amendments to the NSW Anti-Discrimination Act to ensure same-sex couples are protected from discrimination on the basis of their "marital or domestic status" in employment, accommodation and access to other goods and services. The bill passed with a vote of 64-11. The Law Reform Commission report recommended an optional state-wide registry for same-sex couples. Although the Government initially declined to implement this reform back in 2007, it proceeded in creating a relationships registry in 2010 (see below).
Registered relationships
In February 2010, New South Wales Attorney General Hatzistergos announced that the state government will introduce legislation for a state-wide relationships register modelled on ones already in place in the ACT, Victoria and Tasmania. Entering into a "registered relationship" provides conclusive proof of the existence of the relationship, thereby gaining all of the rights afforded to de facto couples under state and federal law without having to prove any further factual evidence of the relationship. In this way, a registered relationship is similar to a registered partnership or civil union in other parts of the world. The law came into effect on 1 July 2010.The Relationships Register Bill 2010 was introduced to the NSW Legislative Assembly on 23 April 2010. The bill was approved by the NSW Legislative Assembly on a 62-9 vote on 11 May 2010, and then by the NSW Legislative Council (upper house) on a 32-5 vote on 12 May. The bill was assented on the May 19, 2010. The law took effect on 1 July 2010.
Adoption and family planning
Same-sex adoption has been legal since 15 September 2010, when the Adoption Amendment (Same Sex Couples) Act received royal assent and entered into force. In July 2009 the Law and Justice Committee of the New South Wales Parliament recommended that the Adoption Act should be amended to allow same-sex couples the right to adopt. Committee chair Christine Robertson said, "The committee has concluded that reform to allow same-sex couples to adopt will help to ensure that the best interests of children are met by our adoption laws." Initially, the Labor government refused to implement the recommendations, arguing that there was no broad community support for such legislation. However, in August 2010, independent MP and Lord Mayor of Sydney Clover MooreClover Moore
Clover Moore , is an Australian politician, the Lord Mayor of the City of Sydney and an independent member of the New South Wales Legislative Assembly, representing the electorate of Sydney. Moore is the first publicly elected female Lord Mayor of Sydney. Prior to the 2007 NSW state election, she...
introduced the Adoption Amendment (Same Sex Couples) Bill as a private member's bill. Both the NSW Premier Kristina Keneally
Kristina Keneally
Kristina Kerscher Keneally MP, is an Australian politician and was the 42nd Premier of New South Wales. She was elected leader of the Australian Labor Party in New South Wales and thus Premier in 2009, but went on to lose government to the Liberal/National Coalition at the March 2011 state election...
and the Opposition Leader Barry O'Farrell
Barry O'Farrell
Barry Robert O'Farrell MP, is an Australian politician and is the 43rd Premier of New South Wales, Minister for Western Sydney, Leader of the New South Wales Liberal Party and a Member of the New South Wales Legislative Assembly representing Ku-ring-gai for the Liberal Party since 1999.Born in...
allowed a conscience vote on the bill. The bill was approved by the Legislative Assembly
New South Wales Legislative Assembly
The Legislative Assembly, or lower house, is one of the two chambers of the Parliament of New South Wales, an Australian state. The other chamber is the Legislative Council. Both the Assembly and Council sit at Parliament House in the state capital, Sydney...
on 2 September 2010 in a 43-45 vote, and by the Legislative Council
New South Wales Legislative Council
The New South Wales Legislative Council, or upper house, is one of the two chambers of the parliament of New South Wales in Australia. The other is the Legislative Assembly. Both sit at Parliament House in the state capital, Sydney. The Assembly is referred to as the lower house and the Council as...
on 9 September 2010 in a 22-15 vote. The Act allows same-sex couples living in a de facto or registered relationship to adopt jointly, as well as to adopt their partner's children (step-child adoption).
All women (regardless if they are single, married or in a relationship with another person) are permitted access to IVF treatment in New South Wales
New South Wales
New South Wales is a state of :Australia, located in the east of the country. It is bordered by Queensland, Victoria and South Australia to the north, south and west respectively. To the east, the state is bordered by the Tasman Sea, which forms part of the Pacific Ocean. New South Wales...
under the Assisted Reproductive Technology Act 2007. Medicare funding, however, requires the couple to be medically infertile, which makes it only available to heterosexual couples because of an assumption that the man is medically infertile. A lesbian couple would likely not have a medical condition that makes the couple infertile. The Artificial Conception Act 1984 (NSW) gave children conceived via artificial insemination
Artificial insemination
Artificial insemination, or AI, is the process by which sperm is placed into the reproductive tract of a female for the purpose of impregnating the female by using means other than sexual intercourse or natural insemination...
the same status as children conceived naturally; in other words, the birth mother and her husband were deemed to be the legal parents. This was later repealed and updated with the Status of Children Act 1996 (NSW) which said the same thing, but accounted for a donated ova. The specific wording did not allow the birth mother's female partner to be legally recognised. The Miscellaneous Acts Amendment (Same Sex Relationships) Bill 2008 passed on 4 June 2008 recognises co-mothers as legal parents of children born through donor insemination and provides birth certificates allowing both mums to be recognised. Adoption and surrogacy reforms were not included. Male couples were excluded from most of the parenting-related legislation. There has been controversy with clause 17 in the Assisted Reproductive Technology Act 2007 that allows donors to nominate classes of people to whom their sperm or eggs may not be given, opening the way for discrimination against ethnic, religious and other minorities, including same-sex couples.
Prior to 2007, there were no laws in place to deal with surrogacy
Surrogacy
Surrogacy is an arrangement in which a woman carries and delivers a child for another couple or person. This woman may be the child's genetic mother , or she may carry the pregnancy to delivery after having an embryo, to which she has no genetic relationship whatsoever, transferred to her uterus...
in the state. This changed with the Assisted Reproductive Technology Act 2007 which declared commercial surrogacy to be illegal and all surrogacy contracts to be void. The bill reiterated previous legislation, declaring that the birth mother and her husband are lawfully deemed to be the legal parents.
The Surrogacy Bill 2010 passed the NSW parliament on November 11, 2010 and the bill got royal assent on the November 16, 2010. The law commences on 1 March 2011. This will recognize non-commercial surrogacy arrangements (the laws are also retrospective). Commercial surrogacy, advertising surrogacy arrangements and also going overseas to enter into a surrogacy arrangement is illegal under the Surrogacy Act 2010.
See also
- LGBT rights in Australia
- LGBT rights in QueenslandLGBT rights in QueenslandSame-sex sexual activity was decriminalized on 29 November 1990. The bill which decriminalized sodomy was assented on 7 December 1990...
- LGBT rights in South AustraliaLGBT rights in South AustraliaSame-sex couples in South Australia have access to many spousal rights and can easily prove that a relationship exists through a domestic partnership agreement...
- LGBT rights in Victoria (Australia)LGBT rights in Victoria (Australia)While Victoria was at the forefront of the gay rights movement in the 1960s and 1970s, it has never taken the lead in gay rights legislation. Gay sex between men was legalised in 1980. Discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation was outlawed in 2000. Victoria has a Domestic Partnership...
- LGBT rights in Queensland
- Recognition of same-sex unions in Australia