介绍： Gay marriage in Australia: Waiting for a vote
The prime minister’s plan for a plebiscite is proving controversial
From The Economist 20161008

0:00



Rainbow warriors
WARREN ENTSCH is a former crocodile-catcher whose federal parliamentary seat covers a remote tropical region of Australia bigger than Bang...

介绍： Gay marriage in Australia: Waiting for a vote
The prime minister’s plan for a plebiscite is proving controversial
From The Economist 20161008

0:00



Rainbow warriors
WARREN ENTSCH is a former crocodile-catcher whose federal parliamentary seat covers a remote tropical region of Australia bigger than Bangladesh. His home state of Queensland and his party, the ruling Liberals, are both conservative. Mr Entsch calls himself “the stereotype redneck”. He is also one of Australia’s most unlikely and zealous advocates for making gay marriage legal. Malcolm Turnbull, the prime minister, has called a non-binding referendum on the issue early next year. Mr Entsch and fellow politicians, however, are bitterly divided over whether asking voters is the best approach. Their rancour will be evident when parliament reconvenes on October 10th after nearly a month’s break.

Australia is one of the few rich countries that still bans same-sex marriage. When it was enacted 55 years ago, the federal Marriage Act never defined marriage. Pitching for votes on “family values” before an election in 2004, John Howard, a former Liberal prime minister, amended the law to say that it is “the union of a man and a woman to the exclusion of all others”. A recent opinion poll, however, showed that almost two-thirds of Australians disagree. Just 6% were undecided.

During a federal election in July, Bill Shorten, the Labor opposition leader, promised to legalise gay marriage within 100 days if Labor won. Mr Turnbull, too, wants change. Last year he suggested a parliamentary vote to decide the issue “one way or another”. Since then, however, he has tailored his progressive views to keep in line with the stance of Tony Abbott, whom he unseated as Liberal leader and prime minister 13 months ago.

Mr Abbott had supported his party’s gay marriage ban. But after wrangles within the conservative Liberal-National coalition, he had offered a plebiscite (as non-binding referendums are called in Australia) as a compromise. Mr Turnbull last month announced that such a vote would be conducted in February.


A poll last month showed that only 39% of Australians backed holding a plebiscite. Many fear that some Liberals would simply ignore an outcome that favoured gay marriage. Alan Joyce, the openly gay chief executive of Qantas, an Australian airline, says the legislature has introduced numerous important reforms without a public vote. “So why can’t parliament be empowered to make this decision?” he asks. Penny Wong, Labor’s shadow foreign-affairs minister, says there is “disappointing evidence” that some will use “hurtful” arguments in a plebiscite campaign.

Like Ms Wong, but unlike his own Liberal party, Mr Entsch (who is also a patron of a Vietnam war veterans’ motorcycle club in his outback region) would prefer a parliamentary vote. “We don’t need to vilify or persecute any minority,” he says. But he believes Mr Turnbull has little choice but to proceed with the plebiscite his party promised during the recent election campaign.

Before one happens, parliament must pass an enabling bill. Mr Turnbull’s government has a majority (of just one seat) in the lower house, and can count on its support. But it has a minority in the Senate, meaning Labor will play a critical role. Mr Shorten says a plebiscite would represent a “fundamental failure” of parliament.

Many take Mr Shorten’s comments as a sign that he will urge Labor to vote against the enabling bill, which would kill it. If that happens, Mr Turnbull would be unlikely to call for a parliamentary vote and thereby risk a revolt in his party. Labor would have to wait for the next general election, which is due in 2019. If it wins, it could push gay-marriage legislation through parliament. For now, it can only take solace in Mr Turnbull’s discomfiture.


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