The AFA expects that tomorrow (Thursday 13th August) the Labor Palaszczuk Government to rush forward the 2019 debate about their proposed ban of so-called ‘conversion therapies’.
Section 28 is the problem and we have been activating voters to lobby the LNP opposition to oppose since late last year.
ACTION: email or call your state MP and ask them to vote against Section 28 of the Health Amendment Bill 2019.
Unsure which state electorate you live in? (Enter your address then, click on ‘state’ not local gov.)
As you may be aware the rare reported instances of groups or medical professionals using unethical techniques to ‘change’ a person’s sexual orientation is being used for MUCH MUCH broader purposes in the proposed legislation.
Without adequate evidence of there being a problem with such therapies in Queensland, the Government is introducing a bill with new criminal offences with maximum penalty of 18 months jail.
Our prediction is that, if passed, funding will flow into education and training programs to re-educate social workers, school counsellors and ‘any health worker’ about the threat of imprisonment if they ‘try to convert’ someone’s sexual orientation or gender identity. It is designed to chill free-speech and demand conformity with the radical transgender lobby.
The bill seems specifically designed to prevent those who regret their own gender transition treatments, or gender transition surgery to speak out about their experience and warn others of the dangers and implications of permanent surgical or hormonal interventions. Thus protected the income and lobbying arm of the transgender activists.
It’s a case of using the law against your ideological enemies under the guise of ‘care’.
The bill’s scope and definitions are VERY broad, poorly written and not founded on substantive evidence nor knowledge of the relevant professional fields.
Read submissions to the committee here (particularly, number 1, 40, 56, 144).
The Labor dominated health committee report even acknowledges that:
“The majority of submissions to the committee (146) addressed the proposed amendments in clause 28 to the Public Health Act 2005 to prohibit conversion therapies by health services providers (Part 5 Chapter 5B). Given that Queensland is the first jurisdiction to propose such legislation as well as the controversial nature of the issue for health professionals, a relatively large number of submissions were received from doctors and psychiatrists, particularly those practicing outside Queensland. While submitters overwhelmingly support protecting people from coercive and brutal conversion therapies, most were critical of the provisions contained in clause 28. … Twenty submissions expressed concern that the definition of conversion therapy at clause 28 new section 213F is too broad or that the scope of practices covered by the definition is, or may be, unclear and interfere with legitimate counselling and other care that health practitioners provide their patients. Submissions suggested that this could have unintended consequences, such as limiting treatment options for persons with symptoms of gender dysphoria and their families.
See Dissenting Report from the two LNP members of the Health Committee on Pages 53 to 56 of the Committee Report.
Who was on the health committee that investigated the bill and heard/read the submissions against section 28?
Mr Aaron Harper MP, Member for Thuringowa (ALP)
Mr Mark McArdle MP, Member for Caloundra (LNP)
Mr Martin Hunt MP, Member for Nicklin (LNP)
Mr Michael Berkman MP, Member for Maiwar (Greens)
Mr Barry O’Rourke MP, Member for Rockhampton (ALP)
Ms Joan Pease MP, Member for Lytton (ALP)
Bernard Lane, covered the story back in February in The Australian, he said:
“In the debate over Queensland’s controversial draft law, a key question was whether or not Mr Miles’s 2018 conversion therapy roundtable — which reportedly shaped the government’s policy — represented a wide range of opinion and expertise.
“The LGBTI Legal Service Inc, which backed the Queensland bill, was among activist bodies at the roundtable but it has emerged that no mainstream medical organisations were present, despite a Queensland Health claim to the contrary. The government has been criticised for rushing the legislation, staging the consultation period during the summer holidays with a January 6 deadline.
“In a dissenting report on the conversion therapy bill, the two Liberal National Party MPs on the six-strong parliamentary committee said there was “little value” in seeking to redraft the contentious provisions, which should be abandoned or voted down. That part of the bill was described as “almost hopelessly unworkable” by the Queensland Law Society.
“Queensland’s one-house parliament has 18 sitting days before the October 31 state election, and some commentators see the radical left faction of Treasurer Jackie Trad as a political liability.” Link
About the bill
Section 28
The bill’s ‘Definition of conversion therapies’
Meaning of conversion therapy
- Conversion therapy is a treatment or other practice that attempts to change or suppress a person’s sexual orientation or gender identity. Examples—
- conditioning techniques such as aversion therapy, psychoanalysis and hypnotherapy that aim to change or suppress a person’s sexual orientation or gender identity
- other clinical interventions, including counselling, that encourage a person to change or suppress the person’s sexual orientation or gender identity
- group activities that aim to change or suppress a person’s sexual orientation or gender identity
The bills ‘Prohibition of conversion therapy’
(1) A person who is a health service provider must not perform conversion therapy on another person. Maximum penalty—
(a) if the other person is a vulnerable person— 150 penalty units or 18 months imprisonment; or
(b) otherwise—100 penalty units or 12 months imprisonment.
Access the Experts
Psychotherapist Stella O’Malley talks to Tim Jackson at the “Detransition: The Elephant in the Room. Medical Ethics in the Age of Gender Identity” conference. She shares personal stories from the the first-of-its-kind detransitioning conference where people who had undergone surgery to transition gender spoke of their regret, their experiences, and what supports are required for people with gender dysphoria.