Senator Derryn Hinch on Homosexual Marriage Plebescite.
Sunshine Coast Daily August 24th.Newscorp.
He says “There was no legal definition of marriage until 2004.” This is simply wrong.
The common law always recognised marriage as between a man and a woman and dealt with marriage in Australia in that way.
The insertion of that heterosexual historic definition at common law into the Marriage Act was no more than a statutory codification of the law that already existed.
No plebiscite or referendum was needed. All that Parliament was doing was re-stating the Law.
To say “it is not a constitutional issue here [in Australia] is also simply wrong. Our Constitution contains a referral of some powers from each of the previous colonies to the Federation and retained others.
In 1901 each state specifically referred the power to make “marriage laws” to the Federal Parliament.
It is a complete misunderstanding to say that Marriage and Protection of Marriage is not a constitutional issue.
It may well be the case that the 97.8% of Australians who are not homosexual could contest as unconstitutional, any law that does not protect the institution of a marriage as heterosexual.
We shall see.
In the meantime it does not help for those such as Senator Hinch, with little or no understanding display their ignorance by verbalising their emotions instead of putting forward real argument.
John Bolton,
Caloundra. 0417862201