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Ingram supports liberals push for referendum on bill of rightsThe Independent Member for Gippsland East, Craig Ingram, last week opposed the Bracks Government’s introduction of a Charter of Human Rights Bill without a referendum. By Craig Ingram MP - 21st June 2006 - Back to News The Liberal Party - through a reasoned amendment - attempted to force the government to put a question on the charter of human rights to a referendum at the State Election in November.
Mr Ingram said this would at least test how much support there was for the charter.
"I vigorously oppose the bill and will support the Liberal Party's reasoned amendment," Mr Ingram said in Parliament.
"There is long history of failure of bills of rights and charters of human rights in this country.
"For example, the 1890 constitutional debates rejected the idea, and referendums in 1944 and 1988 both failed to introduce basic human rights into the constitution.
"The 1944 referendum concerned freedom of speech, freedom of expression, religious freedom, freedom from want and freedom from fear of armed aggression. These are things we in this place would all agree on, but the people of Australia said no.
"In 1973 and again in 1985, attempts were made to pass legislation on basic human rights in the federal Parliament. Both these attempts were strongly opposed and failed.
"Our rights and freedoms are protected by the federal and state constitutions, by statute or common law, but more importantly by the community involvement in public debate and the defence of our democratic rights.
"The only organisation who seems to think they have the right to trample on individual and community rights is the government.
"Country people are sick of governments failing to deal with telemarketers, imposing oppressive gun laws, stopping grandparents giving pocket money to their grandchildren for doing small jobs around the farm, restricting the collection of firewood, locking them out of their favourite national parks and imposing unfair taxes, local government reforms, privatisation and the compulsory wearing of life jackets -- the list goes on.
"I think that this will just add another layer of overpaid, unrepresentative bureaucracy to what is already choking the state," Mr Ingram concluded.
Source: http://gippsland.com/ Published by: news@gippsland.com
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