The Sydney Morning Herald from Sydney, New South Wales, Australia • Page 28

28 The Sydney Morning Herald NEWS REVIEW Saturday, November 20, 1993 are freed of Fred. Gays IMPORTANT NOTICE FOR ILLEGAL ENTRANTS Were you in Australia illegally on or before 10 December 1909? If so. you have until 18 December 1993 to lodge an application to remain permanently in Australia under a special concession for illegal entrants. The concession relates to the circumstances in which you were living at 15 October 1990. which must still be the same.

As an example, if you are married to. or have other ties to an Australian citizen or permanent resident, you may be eligible. To find out if the concession applies to you. you should obtain a copy of thu leaflet People illegally in Australia on or before 18 December 1989' from any office of the Department of Immigration and Ethnic Affairs. II you are in Australia illegally, it is in your interests to check if you are eligible.

You have until 18 December 1993 to apply. By law, late applications cannot be accepted. DEPARTMENT OF IMMIGRATION AND ETHNIC AFFAIRS With anti-hate laws on the books, gays will now seek an end to all barriers to equal treatment. And they have reason to thank a rather surprising ally, writes JENNIFER CONNELL. ED Pickering didn't even know any homosexuals until 15 years ago.

As he recalls his introduction, I was sitting beside this chap who I began talking to. He then introduced me to his wife who was sitting opposite. V' mmm ii i mmm Exhibition of a Draft Master Plan for Pyrmont CSR Land Generally East of Bank Street, West of Harris Street and North of John Street, Pyrmont Thk- Department of Planning is placing on exhibition a draft master plan for the tibovementioned land. This plan has been prepared by the owners of the land as required by Sydney Regional Environmental Plan No. 26 City West.

Llnrition will commence on 22 November. 1993 and conclude on December. lll.i Copies of the draft master plan may be inspected and purchased at "The only thing was, the wife was a young male who I knew as a member of the Young Liberals and 1 sort of didn't understand. I was appalled A colleague then explained some of the facts of life to me I've matured quite a bit since then." He certainly has. Ted Pickering, Liberal MP, former Methodist lay preacher, former NSW Cabinet member, is now the darling of the gay community.

In September, after he had first defied the Premier and crossed the floor to. vote with the Opposition to support legislation outlawing the vilification of homosexuals, Pickering sat back in his Parliament House office surrounded by scores of bouquets sent to him by grateful gays. After Wednesday night's lengthy Parliamentary sitting, which saw the Reverend Fred Nile attempt to thwart the passage of the legislation by leaving a hospital bed to attend, and speaking for up to four hours from a wheelchair, Pickering's hero status was sealed. The passage of the Anti Discrimination (Homosexual Vilification) Amendment Bill 1993 this week, provides members of the gay community with the power to take action against people such as Fred Nile a man who has been "counselled" by the Anti-Discrimination Board in the past but remains unrepentant and undeterred. Returning to his hospital room on Thursday morning, Nile slammed the gay lobby's victory, saying the new laws would "give the 20th-century Information Branch 1.

2. City West Office Department of Planning 4th Floor 33 Mountain Street Ultimo Department of Planning Ground Floor 175 Liverpool Street Sydney Written submissions on the draft master plan are invited. Submissions will be received up to seven days after the conclusion of the exhibition period. They should be sent to: The Team Leader City West Office Department of Planning PO Box 61 Broadway. NSW 2007 Inquiries: Mr.

W. Rogers or Mr. A. Brown (02) 281 0188. All a matter of style Fred and Elaine Nile out for a night's filibustering this week, and (above) Mardi Gras revellers out for a night of something else.

THE UNIVERSITY OPPORTUNITY TO MOVE MERCHANDISE BEFORE XMAS RETAIL SPACE AVAILABLE IN DARLING HARBOUR FROM 1ST TO 23RD DECEMBER INCLUDING EXCITING ADVERTISING CAMPAIGN CALL (02) 977 5046 or (02) 957 5531 018 222 849018 217 746 thought police the powers to suppress free Under the new legislation, a person committing a public act which "incites hatred towards, serious contempt or severe ridicule of a person or persons on the grounds of their homosexuality" will, in serious cases, be liable to a fine of up to $1,000 or six months imprisonment. A repeat of Nile's reference during debate last year on lifting bans on homosexuals in the defence forces to gays in the military as "the high-risk health group with AIDS, syphilis and gonorrhoea on leave holding hands and tongue kissing" might see him before the Anti-Discrimination Board. In such a case, the bill provides for anyone claiming to have been vilified to reach a conciliated settlement with Nile. If that failed, Nile might find himself before the Equal Opportunity Tribunal, which could result in an order to issue an apology or pay damages of up to $40,000. The co-convener of the Gay and Lesbian Rights Lobby, Stevie, says the bill is a start towards changing the attitudes which have condoned or promoted violence aimed at lesbians and gay mea The Lesbian and Gay Anti-Violence Project claims to have had more than 200 reports of attacks or harassment over the past two years, and believes that the deaths of at least 1 4 gay men since April 1990 were anti-gay homicides.

"This legislation is about trying to limit the cause of that hatred that leads next to that violence," Stevie said. But this legislative saga almost became a referendum, according to the lobby's other co-convener, David McLachlan one which had to be won to avert a backlash. Failure to secure the legislation would effectively have said "you can slag off at the gay and lesbian community all you he said. Nile has said that the legislation is a precursor to further demands by the gay community a fact which it does not deny. "What we want is equality and I don't know why that's so scary to people," Stevie said.

"We want to live our lives the way we choose." Talk of homosexual anti-vilification laws began following the April 1990 release of the lobby's report into anti-gay violence, Streetwatch, which led to an Anti-Discrimination Board proposal that its Act be amended to make it illegal for people to incite hatred or violence against homosexuals and people who are HIV-positive. Two years later, the Attorney-General, John Hannaford, gave unequivocal and emotional public assurances to the gay community that he would have the laws it wanted in place by this year. However, the Independent Member for Bligh, Clover Moore, mindful of the strong gay presence in her marginal eastern Sydney seat, formulated her own bill. Introduced in March, it never made it beyond the Lower House. Hannaford, also mindful of his Government's need to court the gay vote in Bligh, which it lost in 1988, introduced his own legislation into the House.

He sold it as bigger, better and more comprehensive than the Moore bill and called upon parliamentarians to endorse his law reform package. But Hannaford had not counted on the effect that a small number of his Government's MPs threatening to cross the floor to vote against their own side would have on the Premier, John Fahey. Faced with the prospect of yet another divisive parliamentary brawl in a hung Parliament, and persistent threats from the Niles that if the reforms became law he could no longer count on their technical skills tor a competitive marketplace. State-of-the-art computer applications for draughting. Top quality, cost effective training in University environment within easy travelling disUnte of Sydney and with aczommodation available.

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Technical enquiries: Department of Applied Science and Technology. Telephone: (049) 216 582, Facsimile: (049) 216 990. Autodesk gay community, which he received from professed Christians over recent months. "What I've done is to try to. create a better society," he said.

"The legislation is completely and utterly in line with the pure Christian principle of love thy neighbour, for God's sake." Fears that the bill would block the right of religious groups to preach against the homosexual lifestyle were unfounded. "We specifically amended the legislation to make sure that's beyond any doubt Pickering said. The president of the Uniting Church Board of Social Responsibility, the Rev. Harry Herbert, said the church was pleased with the passage of the bill, which it had long supported. Yet this issue had sparked a possible permanent rift between the Uniting Church and the NSW Council of Churches, of hich it is a member and which had publicly opposed the legislation.

The Council of Churches has claimed that the Bill would stifle freedom of speech, an argument dismissed by the president of the Anti-Discrimination Board, Steve Mark. The racial vilification legislation, which is very similar to the new bill, was a perfect example that this kind of law did not stop people from expressing a viewpoint, he said. There was a definite line, "which would be perfectly clear to 99 per ce.nt of the between this and outright vilification. But Fred Nile did not see it that way. Just days before voting on the bill, he staged a series of forums to persuade MPs, and others who cared to listen, to reject it.

The Rev. Greg Smith, from the Metropolitan Community Church, the worldwide church for the gay and lesbian Christian community, was one of about 10 people who walked out of a forum on Tuesday which was attended by about 40 people. "They implied there was a link between homosexuality and child molestation Smith said. But the walk-out was ultimately prompted when the forum presenter waved pages of obituaries from a Sydney gay community newspaper, The Star Observer, as alleged proof that homosexual men were responsible for AIDS. Carole Ruthchild said this "rabid kind of nonsense" directed at the gay community by the Niles typified the need for anti-vilification legislation.

"Most people want to be distanced from that kind of hatred," she said. "It's very dangerous that stuff, even though we know it's bizarre and ludicrous votes, Fahey went into closed-door negotiations with them. He emerged saying that the bill had to be dropped, citing public pressure that no minority group should receive special privileges. Having failed to introduce his promised package, Hannaford turned to the Law Reform Commission in a bid to salvage the reputation of his Government with the gay community. He asked it to draft "generic" vilification legislation which he said would encompass homosexuality.

This is yet to be seen. For Clover Moore, who had been robbed of the opportunity to champion a key cause of her constituency, the Government's failure provided the window of opportunity to reintroduce her bill. With the support of the Opposition and the Democrats, Moore required only one Government MP to cross the floor to win, and Ted Pickering did it. David McLachlan said the Government's lack of resilience to the Niles' pressure tactics had led some gay activists to question the confidence placed in John Hannaford. The president of the AIDS Council of NSW, Peter Grogan, is more charitable, saying the Government was genuine enough, "but they were just cowardly; they gave in under virtually no WHEN Moore addressed a gay and lesbian rally outside Parliament House on Tuesday, she could barely be heard over the chanting "Clo-ver, Moore said the Government lacked the drive to see it's own anti-vilification legislation installed.

"The Government tried to persuade me not to introduce my bill and then they were hijacked by the members of the National Party and Fred Nile and they just went weak at the knees An AIDS activist, Tony Carden, said Moore had done more for the gay community than any other politician in Australia and deserved greater recognition. But the emergence of Pickering as a champion of gay rights has surprised many, including the Anti-Violence Project spokeswoman, Carole Ruth-child. "It's surprising to many of us that he's prepared to cross the floor over it He's a very loyal member of the party, which shows the level of his commitment to the issue. You have a new hero for the gay and lesbian community who is not only a Liberal MP but a former Police Minister." Ted Pickering downplayed his new status, but said that his support for the Bill was reinforced by the many hateful letters directed at himself and the Authorised Training Centre A BETTER FUTURE COFFS HARBOUR CITY COUNCIL ASSESSMENT OF ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT OF PROPOSED WATER SUPPLY SCHEME AT NANA GLEN PUBLIC EXHIBITION (Ret. 7322728) Council proposes to provide a town water supply to the villages of Nana Glen and Nana Glen Rail by extracting water from the Orara River adjacent to the village areas.

The work will comprise a river intake with electrically operated pump designed to pump at 7 litressec to an elevated water treatment plant and storage reservoir of 1 ML capacity from which the water will be reticulated to the village areas by gravity. The treatment plant will incorporate clarification, filtration and disinfection facilities and the whole scheme will be designed for a capacity of 150 equivalent tenements. Peak demand on the system is expected to be about 250kL'day. but will be designed for a theoretical peak of 600kLday. An Environmental Impact Statement has been prepared on behalf of Coffs Harbour City Council which examines the scheme and assesses the likely environmental impacts of the scheme.

Alternative sources of supply have been considered and are presented in the Environmental Impact Statement. A decision whether to proceed or not will be made by Council following the examination of submissions received during the public exhibition period of the Environmental Impact Statement. The Environmental Impact Statement is being placed on public exhibition and may be inspected during normal ofice hours for the period from Saturday, 20 November. 1 993 to Tuesday, 21 December. 1 993 at the following locations: Coffs Harbour City Council Off ice Coffs Harbour Library.

Coffs City Water Projects Office 36 Moonee Street Grafton: Department of Planning Regional Office 49 Victoria Street Department of Water Resources Regional Office 50 Victoria Street Sydney: Department of Planning Ground Floor Remington Centre 1 75 Liverpool Street NSW Government Information Centre Ground Floor Goodsell Building 8-12Chifley Square NSW Environment Centre 39 George Street Information Centres: Information may be obtained by inspecting the EIS at the exhibition locations listed above or by contacting Council for a private consultation Purchase of Environmental Impact Statement: During the period of public exhibition copies of the Environmental Impact Statement may be purchased from Council for S25 from the Council Chambers at the 1st Floor Enquiry Counter or by application to the address for submissions given below Submissions: Any person or organisation wishing to make a comment by way of support or opposition to the scheme or on any particular issue associated with the scheme should do so in writing to The General Manager Coffs Harbour City Council Locked Bag 1 55 Coffs Harbour, NSW 2450 Representations should be received on or before 4 00pm Tuesday. 21 December. 1993 Council will give consideration to all representations in making the decision whether to proceed and in formulating the assessment of environmental acceptability conditions pertaining to an approved development Further information can be obtained from the Design Manager. Cofts Harbour City Council, telephone (066) 52 0756 M. J.

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