By Mitchell Clarke
Gay and gender conversion therapy has officially been banned in Victoria, after the State Government’s controversial Bill passed Parliament.
After a marathon 12-hour debate in the Upper House on Thursday 4 February, the new law was passed 27 votes to nine.
The Change or Suppression (Conversion) Practices Prohibition Bill will make it illegal to attempt to change or suppress a person’s sexual orientation or gender identity. Doing so could carry a penalty of 10 years’ jail or fines up to $10,000.
Eastern Victoria MP Harriet Shing, who represents part of the Cardinia Shire and is the only openly gay member in the Victorian Parliament, said the passing of the Bill was an “incredibly important recognition” of the harm that conversion practices have caused to “countless LGBTIQ people over many years”.
“This new law is a hard-fought victory for victims and survivors of change and suppression practices that for too long have shamed, broken and damaged LGBTIQ people in ways which often end in tragedy,” Ms Shing said.
“This is such an important step away from the shame, denial and fragility that we LGBTIQ carry – often for our entire lives. It sends a clear and much-needed message that our disadvantage matters, and that conduct which entrenches our shame will not be tolerated.
“It’s been a privilege to listen to the hurt and trauma of victims and survivors and to do my best to represent their hurt in the chamber.”
The new laws, which were introduced to Parliament in late November 2020, have attracted a great deal of controversy.
The opposition argued the Bill was “poorly-drafted” and allowed government interference in the relationships between medical professionals and patients, between parents and children, and between faith leaders and their congregations.
Many religious figures argued it will strip them of their own religious freedoms and subject them to a risk of prosecution and heavy penalties, claiming the law will “criminalise many common religious practices, and many people of various faiths for doing nothing wrong”.
The Australian Medical Association (Victoria) also said the Bill, as currently drafted, “has the potential to compromise the legitimate practice of medicine”, “unfairly targets psychiatry and psychotherapy specifically” and “has the potential to be detrimental to clinical practice”.
In a statement on 2 February, shadow Attorney-General Edward O’Donohue said the Bill, which he described as an “overreach”, should pass, but with amendments that protected patients, families and people of faith.
“The Liberal Nationals strongly believe that coercive LGBT conversion practices are barbaric and have no place in Victoria,” he said.
“Daniel Andrews needs to listen to the many Victorians who support banning gay conversion therapies but have legitimate concerns about the drafting of this Bill.”
But Ms Shing argued the Bill had a measured approach.
“The law strikes a careful balance between protecting the safety and welfare of LGBTIQ people and maintaining religious freedoms as long as they are not targeted at LGBTIQ individuals with the intent of changing or suppressing sexual orientation or gender,” she said.
Ms Shing said she hoped the passage of the Bill meant a “well-overdue” healing could begin.
The new laws will begin operation in twelve months.
