Page 2676 - Week 12 - Thursday, 16 November 1989
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Now, this is the view that Mr Stevenson is putting forward. Personally, I am not as good a feminist as I would like to be, but I count myself as a feminist. With regard to the term "leftist", well, there are leftists and rightists - does it really matter all that much? I would count myself as a humanist, and I would definitely count myself as a libertarian. If that is supposed to put me in the position of trying to undermine the traditional family in Australia, I indicate that that is simply not the case.
Next in this kit is a publication called Let's Take a Look at Human Rights in Australia, produced by some professor; I do not know exactly who. I was fascinated to read some of the topics in this article, concerning such things as the problems with trade unions. There is also an appendix entitled "Race and Affirmative Action". (Extension of time granted)
Of course this publication has been selectively picked from. Another chapter is called "International Treaties and Human Rights". It states that UN declarations are not exhaustive; UN declarations must be critically examined; UN declarations are selectively resorted to in Australia; conclusions are that the difference is that human rights are essentially individual rights as opposed to collective social rights.
Anyone who has done any reading on the political systems that are in Australia at this time must know where this is coming from. Frankly, I feel that this sort of trash is just out of place in this Assembly. As a matter of fact, I feel rather disgusted that this sort of thing can be put up in what is supposedly the most educated city in Australia. We are living in a city where all types of political views are tolerated. As I said, I personally am disgusted. I know perfectly well where this junk is coming from. I just totally dissociate myself from this motion, and I am sure that any thinking member of the Assembly will do the same.
MR MOORE (4.37): Mr Speaker, as a parent and as a teacher dealing with children for the past 17 years, I have no fear about this convention. I must say that I find it ironic that Mr Stevenson should have chosen the tack he has on this convention. He was, not so long ago, putting himself before the people of Canberra on the claim that he would abolish self-government. Never mind that he has not taken one step towards that promise. He was telling the voters, "We don't want to take care of ourselves. We don't want that responsibility. We want the Federal Government to look after us, to make the decisions, to pass the laws for us". But now he wants to object to something the Federal Government intends doing and he wants this Assembly - this Assembly which he thinks should not exist - to cooperate with him in applying pressure on the Federal Government.
There have been, and there will continue to be, occasions when it is proper and necessary for us to exert pressure on the Commonwealth. This is not one of them. It is a
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