Senate condemns anti-gay World Congress of Families conference
Image: The Australian Senate heard an inquiry into intersex issues for the first time ever this year.
A MOTION聽has been agreed to in the Senate today condemning the anti-gay, anti-abortion World Congress of Families conference and calling on MPs to boycott the event.
The motion was moved by Queensland Greens Senator Larissa Waters and was agreed to on voices with minimal dissent.
鈥淭he World Congress of Families is responsible for spreading homophobic and sexist prejudices around the world, including in Russia, the United States, and countries in Eastern Europe and Africa,鈥� it read.
The motion also reaffirms equality, tolerance and non-discrimination as 鈥渇undamental Australian values鈥�, and reaffirms the 鈥渧alue and dignity of all persons regardless of their gender, sexuality or family status鈥�.
Waters drew particular attention to the participation of Social Services Minister Kevin Andrews, who will open and close the conference in Melbourne on Saturday.
Other state and federal MPs are also expected to attend.
Conference organisers remain tight-lipped on the location of the event in response to community outrage over the organisation’s conservative views.
The Australian Parliament should also pass the Marriage Equality Bill 2014 into law – but we all know that is not going to happen until at least 2023 (Three Federal Elections away)!
A timely reminder to all parliamentarians that they have an obligation to ensure that the laws they enact serve the interests of all Australians and not just those who share their personal religious convictions.
Tony Abbott and Denise Napthine should be demoting Ministers who are giving legitimacy to extreme fundamentalist that seek to make us the target of violence. I simply do not see the difference supporting a Muslim terrorist group or this mob. Religion has no place as a platform for bigotry and terror. The Congress of Families is seeking to bring significant harm to society, and I cannot understand why a Minister would help such an extremist group.
It is deeply disturbing we are being setup as targets of violence by the failure of leadership in the Abbott and Napthine governments.
Tony Abbott certainly wouldn’t; The Endeavour Forum is one of Cardinal Pells firmest supporters with Kevin Andrews periodically guest speaker.
Many of their articles on Islam have now been removed since he started changing his mentality on Muslims, where the Vatican earlier stated they were “one of the most serious and biggest assaults on Christianity that history remembers”, not happy with them migrating from Muslim countries as refugees to Italy.