1yr on: push for civil ceremonies continues

Outrage was heavily voiced when Nicola Roxon appointed Warwick Marsh and Barry Williams as ambassadors for mens health. When Warwick refused to retract his statement on Gay men, he was asked to leave the committee, whilst Mr Williams remained. Barry Williams retracted his involvement against gay men, but was never asked to retract his signature on the petition against the human rights declaration on violence against women. He was never asked to refrain from his hate rhetoric toward victims of family violence caught up in family law proceedings.

Now Barry Williams has been given a free ride to continue systematically abusing women and children in his position on mens health. Note: The word, "advisory" word has been underlined as a significant amount of women have little access to such services. It is also noteworthy to point out that the father can request orders that bar the child from accessing counseling services. This is clearly a greedy grab for more power over women and children.

"3.23 The committee received a large number of submissions about the specific issue of family breakdown and its impact on fathers, who are denied, or have only very limited, access to their children, particularly boys. Clearly, judging from both the individual submissions and those from organisations such as Dads in Distress and Dads4Kids Fatherhood Foundation, this has been a long running issue which, despite reforms to the Family Law and to the procedures of the Family Court of Australia continues to cause immense distress.

3.24 With regard to the health of men in this situation, it is clearly important that they are provided with support after the finalisation of their matter before the court. Many men will need to rebuild their lives, to make new living arrangements, sometimes to find new employment and to adapt to the new relationships with their children, no matter how unsatisfactory they may consider their situation to be. These can be demanding and stressful undertakings. It is very important, therefore that they have access to advisory and counseling services that can help them through this period.

3.25 It is well understood that certain groups in society are at greater risk of developing mental health problems. In Australia, in addition to men who have experienced family break down and loss of contact with children, the incidence of mental health problems rises in rural and regional areas, particularly among Indigenous men, among men from low socio-economic backgrounds, and is also particularly prevalent among Defence force personnel who have served in conflict zones.[24]"

"Gay men

2.95 The committee received some comment on the health of gay men, which has both similarities to and distinct differences from that of the broader community. Gay men are significantly more likely to smoke and use drugs and to exhibit symptoms of anxiety and depression. Gay men also have a higher incidence of HIV/AIDS, various sexually transmitted diseases and some cancers.

2.98 It should be remembered that the constructive and cooperative response of the gay community to HIV/AIDS enabled Australia to respond to that health threat quickly and effectively with the result that HIV/AIDS has been managed very successfully in this country."

Barry Williams might have been able to retract his statement, but clearly his sentiments have made it through. Perhaps the committee could be renamed as, "White supremacist men committee". Some of the comments made on the petition to remove him off the committee were:

"Mr Williams' views on homosexuality are disgraceful and he should not be in a position to influence decision making."

"Men's health issues are as important as those of women or children or any other 'group' in society. However anyone who is going to advise the government on the interests of one particular group can't do so at the expense of others, and that is precisely what having the wrong people with the wrong attitudes in powerful positions will do."

"As a grandmother who has watched the continuing harassment of my daughter and grandchildren with no help or acknowledgement by the law, the government or Family court, I am inceasingly distressed by the comments made which reinforce the rights of fathers but disregard the responsibility that should come with rights. My family continue to suffer accordingly and I see no end to the continuing distress. Mr Williams statements are highly predudiced and show no understanding of what really happens."

"I think it is disgusting that Nicola Roxon appointed this homophobe as a "health ambassador" - especially since young gay males are over-represented in the suicide statistics in this country."

"It is completely unacceptable that a homosexuality denier, who has supported a publication which attacks homosexuals with no credible research justification, should be in the publically responsible position of being an ambassador for men's health. He should be replaced with another indigenous candidate who can accept diversity in the community, and who has not promoted discredited, hurtful and alienating lies about gender and sexuality."

"Homophobia is a serious problem in our society and something should be done about it. It is a basic human right that we respect other people's orientaions. Having someone in public office who is providing the wrong role model for our children is a NO. I don't want my children to grow up homophobic."

"Prejudice has no place in services to assist women and men."

"As a gay man I am deeply offended that the government I voted for, and which passed legislation to reduce discrimination in the law against gay men, should place this anti-gay man in the men's health committee."

"This is utterly appalling and highly inappropriate. Nobody with a discriminatory agenda should be validated by any act of government."

"Please ensure that the men you appoint are not homophobes, misogynists or bigots"

"Men with extreme views on homosexuality and violence against women have no place in a health advisory position."

"Tolerance still says there is something to be tolerated. Gay men and all other me who have sex with men need support and nurturing to be the best we can be. This is the type of Health Ambassadors we need."

"Get rid of homophobia!"

"I support the Rudd Labor Government beacuse I was under the impression they supported tolerance and human rights. It is against the law to discriminate against people on the basis of sexuality. How then can Roxon appoint two law breakers on her committee? I am disgusted by the decision in the first place but also the fearful and pathetic choose to keep a zealot like Barry Williams there."

"As a Labor party member and someone who has worked in the government sector I am very concerned that two men who clearly are not inclusive have been appointed to this important taskforce. Both as the daughter of a man who developed an incurable cancer from easily curable stomach ulcers and as a person who believes in inclusion and equality I think these appointments are disgraceful."

"Please also include an openly gay man who can represent the gay community."

"The appointment of Warwick Marsh and Barry Williams is contrary to improving mens health.

"Homophobia must be purged from government - not endorsed."

"The appointment of Mr.Marsh and Mr Williams to the Mens Health taskforce is ludicrous. These men do not represent the interests of all men or all men's health issues. Their person beliefs on subjects of gay and lesbian people clearly should prohibit their appointment. For the governemnt's credibility please remove these homophobes immediately"

"Please reconsider the choices made for these roles - in light of the literature produced by these men I have no confidence that they will work in the best interests of Men's Health."

"Nicola Roxon is a big disapointment. Her judgement is clearly poor and her ideology is spurious. She should resign as well."

"Nicola - i can't believe that this has happened. You have become one of our best politicians and ministers. I know you will be shocked by this so please fix it as soon as possible and remove these very dangerous men."

"Denigrating fellow Australians, is totally unaustralian"

"there is no room for the promotion of any sort of discrimination by anyone,especially one attached to the federal government."

1yr on: push for civil ceremonies continues

Posted 10 hours 12 minutes ago
Updated 9 hours 38 minutes ago

Official: Jennifer and Glenda Lloyd are among more than 70 couples that have registered their relationships. (ABC News )

Today marks one year since the introduction of the controversial civil partnership laws in the ACT.

So far more than 70 same-sex couples have officially registered their relationships.

The Government tried to introduce civil union ceremonies for same-sex couples but the Federal Government intervened saying the arrangement was too similar to marriage.

The peak lobby group for same sex couples, Good Process, says the ACT Government should now push for the laws to include a ceremony.

Good Process spokeswoman Heidi Yates says the first anniversary is a good time to re-visit the issue.

"We would like to see a legal ceremony introduced as part of the Civil Partnerships Act," she said.

"I guess until all couples regardless of gender have a choice or not to marry, then discrimination and prejudice will continue."

Paul Hartigan and Tuck Meng Soo have been in a gay relationship for more than 15 years. They registered their relationship but found the system less than ideal.

"It was like turning up to get unemployment benefits - it's got as much romance as that," Mr Hartigan said.

So for the gay community the fight against discrimination is still not over.

"I think it's quite important there be no discrimination between gay people and straight people in this matter and there is now," Mr Hartigan said.

"I mean, the discrimination - they've made an attack on it, but it basically remains."

Attorney-General Simon Corbell agrees but says the ACT remains at the mercy of the Commonwealth.

He says it will take a state government - outside the Commonwealth's jurisdiction - to eventually achieve that reform.

"I was very disappointed that a Federal Government refused to accept that position but we have to achieve what we can achieve and that's what we've done," he said.

"I think nevertheless, Canberrans who are in same-sex relationships have taken the opportunity to take it up, and that's been very pleasing."

Roxon's ambassadors: homophobic, sexist and totally inappropriate

Canberra correspondent Bernard Keane writes:

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The nauseating views of Warwick Marsh, revealed by Crikey following a reader’s tip yesterday, have cost him his men’s health ambassadorship. Nicola Roxon this morning described his views as abhorrent and, when he declined to repudiate them, sacked him.

Good riddance and the less said about him and his loathsome ilk the better.

However, Barry Williams, head of the Lone Fathers’ Association, has "publicly and unequivocally disowned" the homophobic views pushed by the "Fatherhood Foundation", and kept his role for now.

Williams blamed yesterday’s revelations on "extreme feminists". Yikes. I’ve never been called that before, not even in my hilariously SNAG uni days. With all due respect to Mr Williams, you don’t have to be any sort of feminist to find those views about gays and lesbians deeply offensive. A functioning moral compass is all that suffices.

Williams was deliberately selected because the Government wants to target men who are, in Roxon’s words, "disfranchised, disengaged". There’s merit in that idea and a group like Lone Fathers offers a vehicle for accessing such men. We’re therefore into the difficult area of maximizing the effectiveness of a health policy versus condoning the extreme views of an organization composed of often embittered men angry at ex-partners and the Family Court.

Part of Williams’s brief as head of his Association is to promote the view that men are as much victims of domestic violence as women. This is a persistent theme in his newsletters. All victims of domestic violence deserve support services, regardless of gender, and all perpetrators deserve appropriate handling via the criminal justice system. Anything that encourages male victims of domestic violence to be more open about their experiences is worthwhile and complements the aims of the men’s health ambassadors program.

But Williams goes to extremes in his advocacy for male victims of domestic violence. In 2006, he was a co-signatory of a response to "the anti-male UN report on 'Violence against women'", which argued that reporting of domestic violence was biased against men, including several claims that women are greater perpetrators of domestic violence than men -- such as "a recent international study of severe violence among dating couples, 55% was mutual violence, 16% was male only, and 29% of violence was female only."

Saliently, the response also claimed that domestic violence programs "have been shown to result in widespread violations of due process protections... weaken families, bias divorce proceedings, and deprive children of contact from their fathers." That statement goes beyond advocating for male domestic violence victims. Way beyond.

These views aren’t unrelated to men’s health, but they’re not quite in the same league as the drivel peddled by Marsh. Even so, no Government should be entirely comfortable with such people as a representative of a taxpayer-funded program.

Not that Williams is entirely the cleanskin about gay and lesbian issues that his comments make him out to be. The Lone Fathers’ Association has given space to Marsh in itsnewsletters to promote his views on “gender disorientation pathology” and criticise attempts to end discrimination against same-s-x couples as "evil". Williams himself has criticised same-sex couples as unable to provide appropriate “mental and moral development” for children and unequal to heteros-xual couples.

This morning Roxon took responsibility for the appointment of Marsh and said that she wished more background checking had been done. Roxon has been badly let down by either her office or her bureaucrats or both. There are two ways Marsh would have been appointed – either on the recommendation of the Minister’s staff, or on the suggestion of the Department of Health and Ageing. But even in the former case, some background checking should’ve been done by bureaucrats in the relevant program area (presumably the Population Health Division). Perhaps it was and it was provided to Roxon’s office, who ignored it. Either way, it’s an unnecessary and sloppy lapse in judgement.

Unnecessary and sloppy also applies to the appointment of Tim Mathieson. What sort of political tin ear does Roxon have to think this was okay? Mathieson will probably be perfectly serviceable in the role but his lack of qualifications of any kind is fairly glaring. Then again, worse appointments have been made before and will be made again by both sides. Dennis Jensen this morning put out a press release about it, loaded with hair puns. "I don’t want to split hairs on this but I’d urge you all to be asking her some curly questions." For Jensen, it was impressively close to amusing. And that’s about what it deserves.

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Rights group demands sacking of 'anti-gay' ambassador

Posted 30 minutes ago

A gay rights group is calling on the Federal Government to sack both of the men's health ambassadors who have been linked to a document criticising homosexuality.

Barry Williams from the Lone Fathers group and the Fatherhood Foundation's Warwick Marsh are listed as authors of a publication that says homosexuality is a disorder.

The Government has dismissed Mr Marsh but has retained Mr Williams, who has distanced himself from the document.

Rodney Croome from the Coalition for Equality says Mr Williams should be sacked too.

"Even though he's repudiated the anti-gay manifesto he originally signed, Barry Williams has repeatedly lobbied and advocated against the legal recognition and protection for same sex couples and their families," he said.

"It's exactly these kind of discriminatory attitudes which undermine better health outcomes for gay men by stigmatising them as unfit parents."

Roxon sacks health ambassador over gay slur

Posted 52 minutes ago

Health Minister Nicola Roxon has dumped one of the Federal Government's newly-appointed men's health ambassadors for his views on homosexuality.

Two of the ambassadors, Barry Williams and Warwick Marsh, are listed as authors of a publication which says homosexuality is a mental disorder.

Mr Williams, from the group Lone Fathers, has distanced himself from the comments.

But Ms Roxon says Mr Marsh, from the Fatherhood Foundation, still stands by them, and his position has therefore become untenable.

"I think these comments particularly about homosexuality are quite abhorrent," she said.

"I don't share those views, but it is very clear that he has not repudiated these comments, they are very offensive and it's not appropriate for him to continue in this role."

WEDNESDAY, 26 NOVEMBER 2008

Canberra correspondent Bernard Keane writes:

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Nicola Roxon has appointed a number of men’s health ambassadors to encourage men to speak about their health. Among them is the Governor of Victoria, Professor David de Kretser AO, Governor of Victoria and founder and patron of Andrology Australia, Tim Mathieson, "businessman and men’s health advocate" but actually Julia Gillard’s personal hairstylist, Bill Noonan of the TWU, and Professor John Macdonald of the University of Western Sydney.

Fine gentleman all, although quite what Tim Mathieson has done to warrant the honour is a good question. That may be asked of Roxon this afternoon.

But a Crikey reader has pointed out, there are a couple of other more interesting ambassadors. Warwick Marsh, President of the Fatherhood Foundation, and Barry Williams, President of the Lone Fathers Association.

Marsh and Williams seem to have rather peculiar views on some male health issues. Worse than peculiar, actually. Downright evil is a term that springs to mind. Because they appear to have a problem with gay men. Marsh’s group has a website where it has brought together people "who believe in the natural biological family. The best way to protect children is for children to be brought up by a loving mother and father who are married." On the site, you’ll find a quite loathsome document called "21 Reasons Why Gender Matters".

This 23-page screed is mostly notable merely for promulgating tediously stereotypical views of people and their relationships. For example, did you know that about male and female complementarity that "in the marital embrace, it is experienced in the way that the men, being physically oriented to giving himself, at the same time receives the woman, while the woman, being physically oriented to receiving the man, at the same time gives herself to him."

I never heard it called that before.

But the document also contains a long list of disgusting statements about homos-xuality, suggesting it is unnatural, a "preventable and treatable" illness, representative of immaturity, and associated with psychiatric disorders and drug addiction. "Gender disorientation pathology", as the document calls homos-xuality, "will lead to increased levels of drug abuse and partner violence." In particular, the document strongly associates homos-xuality with sexual abuse. "Gender disorientation pathology encourages the s-xual and psychological exploitation of children," it says. On and on it goes, page after page, "supported" by nonsensical and misinterpreted studies, ranting against gays and lesbians.

Warwick Marsh and Barry Williams are listed as "authors and contributors" to this vile, bigoted garbage. These men should have nothing to do with any cause associated with men’s health, when they’re linked to a document that promotes the view that gay men are predisposed toward pa-dophilia, violence, drug use and psychological illness. The sort of view that encourages violence toward gays and lesbians.

Nicola Roxon should immediately demand Marsh and Williams dissociate themselves in every way from this stuff, or find some new ambassadors.

Roxon's Ambassadors exploit their position

"Gay men