private business number 102 agenda bait
on motion of the Honorable C Banaras
Hon  Ms Franks. Thank you Mr. President I rise today on behalf of the Greens to
speak in support of this motion as we
are currently in the lead-up to the
celebration of our or well  with in the
celebration of our own 125th anniversary
of women's suffrage in the state I'm
particularly glad of the opportunity to
reflect and commemorate on the 125th
anniversary of women's suffrage in New
Zealand just across the ditch indeed as
we celebrate with state dinners so many
firsts and so much achievement that have
been rights hard fought for it is a
wonderful time to reflect and an
opportunity to look not just how far
we've come but of course how far we
still have to go. Today in the Advertiser
the Australian Christian Lobby have
taken out a full-page ad it says SA's
radical prostitution bill seriously out
of touch as the head of the Sex Industry
Network noted on Facebook in a comment
responding to that particular full-page
ad commentary since when for Human
Rights radical? Well I would have to say
unfortunately human rights are always
radical and they are always hard fought
and they are not easily given. We are
following in baby steps yet again and
New Zealand sisters and I hope that we
can one day see at a time when South
Australia yet again leads because I have
to say while suffrage is absolutely
worth celebrating and commemorating I do
find it odd that in some some ways we
talk about women's equality and
enfranchisement while in many ways we
still refuse to fully accept women's
agency autonomy and control over their
own lives. I refer of course in
particular not just to that current
debate of the decriminalisation of sex
work but also the decriminalisation of
abortion. These are two key areas of
legislation where we still continue to
deny people predominantly women
the right and agency to make decisions
regarding their own lives and their own
bodies and while we're comparing these
progressive reforms it is worth noting
that New Zealand decriminalise sex work
back in 2003 I hope that we can follow
New Zealand in that reform as we did
with women's suffrage clearly taking a
little longer to do so of course as we
celebrate the hundred and twenty fifth
anniversary of women's suffrage in New
Zealand we also take inspiration from
the feminists who fought for those
reforms and many others. As Professor
Pickles has written at the end of the
19th century feminists in New Zealand
had a long list of demands that included
equal pay, prevention of violence against
women, economic independence for women,
old-age pensions and reform of marriage
divorce health and education and peace
and justice for all.
Again it's sad to say that while we talk
about equality and enfranchisement so
many of those issues that I've just
listed are still just that issues and
challenges that face and we have a lot
of work to do. But as Mary Lee would say
let us be up and doing and as Mary Lee
would also say and did say sadly not in
this place but outside this place while
fighting for suffrage "Are we free people
if we are then why are women asking for
enfranchisement is it that they are not
recognised part of the people if not
what are they
chattels if they are admittedly a part
of the people then it follows that while
the franchise is withheld from women are
claimed to be free people is a baseless
claim it seems a strange anomaly the
criminals lunatics women and children
are classified as unfit to have charge
of themselves and their interests un-worthy to be free incapacitated for the
due exercise of the vote let us
hope that as the work proceeds are
pulling down one after another the
remains of the moldering fabric of
monopoly and tyranny this one will not
be the last to disappear and before the
lapse of another generation the accident
of sex no more than the accident and
skin will be deemed a sufficient
justification of depriving
a possessor of the equal protection
and just privileges of a citizen" no
truer words were said sadly however is
far too often the giving of rights that
is resisted and you have to reflect that
human rights are not pie there is enough
for everyone.
Edward Charles Stirling when he put the
motion for women to be admitted for the
franchise for both houses of parliament
stated that the reason which made it
desirable that men should be represented
made it equally desirable that women too
should be represented and I believe it
would one day be thought incredible that
there ever was a time when the idea of
giving votes to women was regarded as
dangerous and revolutionary. But we know
it was regarded as dangerous and
revolutionary and the wonderful
dangerous and revolutionary  Mary
Lee stood firm against the bullies one
particular bully ever Ebenezer Ward the then member for Frome, was a man who made
it his business to thwart the
advancement of women in this state he
spent some drunken hours in the other
place I do believe attempting to execute
that ambition I am pleased to say that
he did not prevail.
Indeed Mary Lee at once one stage of her
campaign feared that he would at least
perhaps before she passed and she stated
"Sir it is my fixed conviction that every
question that concerns the highest
interests of our race concerns the women
of our race believing if I have the high
section for this conviction I mean to
live for this reform and if I die before
it is achieved women's enfranchisement
shall be a grave engraved upon my heart"
she stated this in 1888. Fortunately she
went on to be buried in work Walkerville
without the need for women's
enfranchisement to be engraved on her
heart but indeed it was carried forward
by the women of this state
in the very giving of our rights to vote.
As Mary Lee also said "dream on the
glorious dream but act also so is to
make the dream a reality some people
would have us believe that the present
world is quite good enough it may be
good enough for them but it is not good
enough for us we must go forward and
upward
there is no finality in human progress"
in many respects there is no finality in
celebrating our hundred and twenty-fifth
anniversary of suffrage and in New
Zealand one hundred and twenty-fifth
anniversary of suffrage without
recommitting to that progress we have
come some way we have moved from
chattels we have moved from being viewed
as property but we still have a long way
to go to be viewed to have autonomy. We
have equal pay in law but not in culture
we have a woman no longer needing to
give up her job or her career in the
public sector or elsewhere upon being
married but she will likely retire with
far less super. Sex discrimination
continues to linger and while it is
unlawful the me2 movement shows that is
far too prevalent but clearly time is up.
We are done with waiting patiently to be
afforded respect and rights and as we're
a debate in coming months abortion law
reform and sex work decriminalisation I
hope that we reflect this while South
Australia has once more led the way in
our 125th anniversary let the
responsibilities be ours
let us compel our legislators to
recognise the necessity of yielding to
the inflexible will of an enlightened
woman womanhood determined to be free
those words of Mary Lee will echo
throughout the actions of this chamber
and the other place and I pay tribute in
particular to the work of the South
Australian Abortion Action Coalition and
the Sex Industry Network predominantly
women who are fighting for autonomy and
equal rights and human rights in this
state and my final words to those women
and today are again of Mary
they let those who desire to help women
place in her hands the power to help
herself.
