Ruddock's 'glitter and lipgloss' support for Mardi Gras

In industrial relations, it remains lawful to refuse to hire or promote a person on the basis of their sexuality, and most entitlements do not apply to same-sex partners, including bereavement leave and worker’s compensation. Some Commonwealth agencies recognise same-sex partners for the purposes of work related travel (Foreign Affairs and Trade and the Federal Police, for example), but this is the extent of the recognition.

Indeed, all Commonwealth legislation which touches on relationships, whether it’s aged care facilities, Family Court access, public service entitlements, taxation rates, Medicare costs, veteran’s pensions, superannuation reversionary pensions and so on - discriminates against same-sex couples. This discrimination mostly targets personal finances, penalising not only same-sex couples but any children they may be raising.

While Britain, Canada, New Zealand and South Africa, to name a few comparable jurisdictions, have all enacted nationwide Sexuality anti-discrimination laws, Australia has not. And while Ruddock rushed to extinguish marriage rights for gay couples in Australia (supported by Labor), the Coalition has no plans to legally recognise same-sex couples with alternative “civil unions” or “registered partnerships,” unlike many similar countries. While at the same time, it is pushing ahead with plans to outlaw adoptions to same-sex families and barring lesbian access to IVF.

In this context, and as the Howard Government increasingly defers to the Religious Right on social policy, pressure will mount for it to reverse its positive position on the Brazilian motion (pdf file 48KB) that will again come before the UNHRC in March.

This reasonably straight forward motion “expresses deep concern at the occurrence of violations of human rights in the world against persons on the grounds of their sexual orientation,” and proposes to add “sexuality” to the categories of discrimination that can be protected by the UN.

Retired Attorney General Daryl Williams had agreed to support the motion on behalf of Australia last year, but the entire process was delayed and derailed after an intense anti-gay campaign from several Islamic states and the Vatican.

It will be interesting to see if new Attorney General, Philip Ruddock, will maintain Australia’s support for this global human rights benchmark in keeping with his Mardi Gras mantra. Whether he does or not, won’t change the fact that his human rights “drag”, worn especially for the promo in the festival guide, is a mocking, artificial façade of glitter and lip gloss that hides an ugly reality.