Well, another Melbourne Star out today – 16th March – and another Rainbow Report on air tonight.
I now have a full support team, including an Executive Producer, station News Director Tim Lennox.
In the first 40 minutes of the show I introduce items by other contributors, while the last 20 minutes is a discussion panel.
Picked up the latest MCV (Friday 3rd March) and breathed a HUGE sigh of relief – they’re back on form again. Over the last couple of months they seemed to have turned into some weird corporate brochure, with pseudo-manga covers and news downgraded to filler status, but THEY’RE BACK!! Hooray!
After Melbourne Star went to press, I spoke to Queensland Liberal MP Warren Entsch about his plans to introduce a Private Members Bill to tackle discrimination against same sex couples.
He wants to look at issues of equity, but won’t address marriage and adoption because, as he candidly admits, that would bring the churches down on him. He also pointed out that equitable treatment has some downsides eg Centrelink payments - but that’s equality.
That was Roxon’s excuse for not addressing couple-related discrimination at this time: she claimed that since there would be some losses for gay couples if their relationship was recognized, change needed to be managed to ensure that these were brought in at the same time as compensating gains.
“I’ll be writing to all my colleagues to point out these inequalities,” said Entsch, “they say its all fixed up with super and the ADF but that’s just scratching the surface. “
Strictly Practical
“Exactly how we tackle it, whether with some kind of national recognition system or by recognising what’s in place in the states (except South Australia) I don’t know at this stage.”
He focusing on the strictly practical: “What you need is some kind of formal recognition document that triggers the same processes that a marriage certificate triggers for heterosexuals. Don’t care what we call it. Just stay away from marriage to keep the churches out of it.”
Entsch has met with members of the Australian Coalition for Equality and says he will be working with them on the proposed bill.
Lot’s of Liberal support?
Entsch claimed he already had the support of a surprisingly large number of colleagues, though none would go on the record at this stage until they had seen the details of his proposals.
“Some Liberals say its against Liberal policy and philosophy, but I point out to them, it was Liberals who got rid of the white Australia policy, got aboriginal rights and women’s rights, and decriminalized homosexuality.”
Why you?
I asked him why, with his rather roughneck heterosexual reputation, would take on such a battle.
“I have some very dear friends in Queensland who’ve been together for 27 years,” he said, “and accept them socially and personally as a couple in every way. My 12 yr old son is great friends with them and always wants to know when we’re going to spend time with them. How could I accept them privately and then come to this place and pretend that their relationship was something less than it is? There’s a word for that. It’s ‘hypocrisy.’”
He said he’d had a great deal of response from the public, most of it positive, with only five correspondents against – and they were focused on ‘the sex angle’.
It’s not about the sex,” he said, “I’m not interested in the sex, blokes parading in the Mardi Gras with feathers up their bums. It's not about that. It’s about fairness and equity before the law.”
Labor Window-Dressing
Entsch is convinced that Nicola Roxon’s proposed bill – which will not address any of the issues relating to couples - has been generated by the stand he’s taking - a desire not to be left behind. “She’s not dealing with the real issues it’s just window dressing. Talking the talk but not walking the walk: these anti-discrimination and harassment measures she’s talking about are already there,” he told me.
And he may be right. The day after I asked Roxon if she would work with the Liberals to secure a conscience vote on these issues, creating a bipartisan approach similar to that which wrested abortion pill RU486 from Tony Abbott’s control, I received the following:
Nicola Roxon MP
Shadow Attorney-General
Tanya Plibersek MP
Member for Sydney
JOINT MEDIA RELEASE
Labor recommits to gay and lesbian law reform
This week the Labor Caucus endorsed a plan to actively campaign on gay and lesbian law reform and pursue the Howard Government on its failure to make good its promises.
As part of Labor’s campaign, Nicola Roxon will introduce a private members’ bill to combat discrimination, harassment and incitement to violence based on sexuality or gender identity. Parliament needs to send a strong message that homophobic violence, intimidation and discrimination are unacceptable.
Labor will also step up pressure on the Howard Government to fulfil its promise to end discrimination against same sex couples in the area of public sector superannuation.
Further, we have committed to making sure that same sex couples are included when the Family Court jurisdiction is extended to cover property disputes of de facto couples, a change which is expected this year. The Howard Government has indicated that it will limit the extension to heterosexual couples, leaving same sex couples the stress and expense of negotiating both state and federal courts in the event of family break-up.
Labor will commence consultation on the models for a system of formal recognition of same sex relationships, such as civil unions. We look forward to discussing this issue with gay and lesbian groups across Australia.
Federal Labor looks forward to building on our achievements and working constructively with the LGBT community to bring an end to discrimination.
Wednesday, 1 March 2006
Following my front page story In Melbourne Star last issue (Cops Lose their GLLOs) Victoria Police acknowledge that the program is in trouble, and are trying to decide where they go from here.
In direct response to our revelations, the full-time GLLO for Region 4 (covering areas such as Monash, Knox, Whitehorse and Boorondara) will now remain in post at least until April, and a new volunteer GLLO has been appointed to cover the LaTrobe Valley in Region 5.
The Equal Opportunity Commission, the Victorian AIDS Council, the Rainbow Network and the ALSO Foundation, are all writing to Chief Commissioner Christine Nixon, and asking for explanations.
The gay and lesbian liaison officer program was begun because so many crimes against gays and lesbians, especially domestic violence and sexual assaults, went unreported.
The GLLO mission statement says “The Gay and Lesbian Mission is to contribute to the creation of mutual trust between police, lesbians, gay men, bisexuals, transgender and intersex persons so that they may have increasing confidence in police through the provisions of fair and equitable policing service.”
But Melbourne Star has spoken to several serving gay and lesbian police officers, who paint a disturbing picture of a program struggling to survive in the face of a hostile culture, especially in the middle levels of the command structure.
The officers allege that people without appropriate qualifications and little or no interest in the job are sometimes appointed. The function may be added to an officers existing responsibilities, but no additional resources are provided, and pro-active outreach to the GLBTI community is not sanctioned.
This creates a self-fulfilling prophecy. If the GLLO is unenthusiastic, with neither the resources, motivation or official sanction to build bridges with the community, crimes against gays and lesbians continue to go unrecorded in the statistics on which the police rely when deciding how best to use their resources. As a result a commander can argue that, since the statistics show little or no gay related crime, there is no need for a GLLO.
Melbourne Star has even heard of unsympathetic officers appointed as GLLOs because their commander ‘has no particular use’ for them, to encourage them to quit the force. These sorts of abuses arise where the program is run by “people whose heart isn’t in it,” according to one source.
The problem is not confined to Victoria – Surry Hills, one of Sydney’s largest police stations, right in the heart of the gay district, has been without a GLLO for three months. A temporary Mardi Gras Liaison Officer has been appointed, but there’s no sign of a permanent replacement.
CASE STUDY – WHY WE NEED GLLOs
The case of the two men who were bashed at Spring Street tram stop after Carnival illustrates exactly why we NEED gay and lesbian liaison officers.
The police who answered their 000 call told them to remain at the tram stop while they searched for the attackers.
But the couple, believing they had done everything necessary, and feeling unsafe remaining in the area, left.
When the police returned to the scene 20 minutes later to find them gone, they assumed the couple had decided not to take the matter further. So they made no official report.
So when the area GLLO, Senior Constable Danielle Cameron was contacted by the press for information, she could find no record.
However, by checking 000 calls she traced the officers involved, and the victims, persuading them to make the all-important official report, without which the police can’t launch an investigation.
The official report also ensures that the crime appears in the statistics, and as we have seen, if crime doesn’t show up in the stats, senior command don’t believe it’s happening, and don’t allocate resources to tackle it.
In a further twist, when Cameron tried to track the progress of the investigation, she discovered that data entry staff hadn’t ticked the box identifying it as a gay hate crime.
State GLLO Co-ordinator Sergeant Scott Davis is now trying to discover how often this might have happened in the past. If it turns out to be a common error, the statistics on which Victoria Police are basing their decisions about the future of GLLOs may well show anti-gay crime at a much lower level than it really is.
Two things:
First, our piece on GLLOs appears to be having an effect - I'll be posting more info here tomorrow when Melbourne Star is out - or you could pick up a copy!
And I'm recording a pilot Rainbow Report at the Joy studios on Friday - keep your fingers crossed and if all goes well I'll be back on air with a new-style 1 hour once a week show soon.......
Cops Lose their GLLOs
Front page article Melbourne Star this week
Victoria police quietly dropped full-time gay and lesbian gay and liaison officers for major regional towns such as Geelong, Warrnambool, Ballarat and Wodonga in January. Outer suburbs like Knox, Nillumbik, Whitehorse, and Boorondara lost their GLLO at the same time. Officers who have been promoted or moved on – sometimes at their own request – have not yet been replaced.
Police say the GLLOs in Regions 2 and 4 (see breakout boxes) have had little to do. But this could reflect the way the officers are selected, rather than a genuine lack of anti-gay crime. Many GLLOs are volunteers with a genuine desire to serve the gay and lesbian community. But others were appointed to the role, and many of these were intimidated by the job and uncomfortable dealing with gay and lesbian people.
Kirstin Hughes of BBent Ballarat said Senior Constable Josh Allison had been a very pro-active GLLO, but his predecessor had done almost nothing. She said she wasn’t surprised that few cases had been reported, as until Allison took over, hardly anyone knew GLLOs even existed or how to contact them.
Sources say many of the appointed officers made little or no attempt to work with the GLBTI community, and “just sat in their offices waiting for the phone to ring.” As a result they had little or no GLBTI-related crime to report. By contrast, officers who volunteered for the job were motivated to reach out and develop relationships with individuals and community groups, and in their areas gays and lesbians have come to feel more confident in reporting, for example, hate-related incidents.
The removal of full time coverage in Regions 2 and 4 means only Region 1 – covering the city and inner suburbs – currently has a full-time gay and lesbian liaison officer. Regions 3 and 5 have never had full-time coverage – and even in these areas the numbers have been reduced. The total number of GLLO’s, which stood at 12 in November last year, is currently down to 7.
In Region 2, it’s allegedly been suggested that station sergeants or regional inspectors could take on the job. These are already very busy people, most of whom have not been specially trained in GLBTI issues, and are unlikely to be especially sensitive to our concerns or pro-active in forging links with our community. The rate of reported anti-gay crime will then fall still further, regardless of the real situation on the ground.
John Todor, Acting Superintendent for Region 4 said the GLLO position would be retained ‘under a new structure with modified reporting lines’, but the position was not being abolished. He stressed that ‘effective liaison with community groups will be maintained.’
Superintendent David Newton from Regon 2 said a review had determined that ‘a single full-time GLLO did not provide the best possible service to he community’ due to ‘the geography of the region, which stretches from Footscray to the SA border.’ Instead 15 officers spread across the region will take on the voluntary profile as GLLOs, co-ordinated by a single inspector.
Mike Kennedy of the VAC said, “You want people who are seen as being approachable by the community. The process whereby you had volunteers who were screened and then trained is very different from saying we’ll allocate this to a person, whoever they may happen to be, who’s in a particular role, such as station sergeant. This isn’t an appropriate way to do it.”
He said the VAC would be writing to Commissioner Christine Nixon and Police Minister Tim Holding, asking for public commitment to the continuation and development of the GLLO program.
There is resistance to the program within Victoria police, which has been exploited by the state Liberal opposition. In September last year the Liberals complained that Holding had boosted the Gay and Lesbian Unit by 20 while cutting the Police Schools Involvement Program (PSIP).
They claimed that “police can’t understand why the Gay and Lesbian Unit has been boosted when there are widespread shortages of police everywhere else across the force.” It appears there are some within the Victoria Police who agree with them.
[Breakout Boxes]
TOWNS AND SUBURBS THAT HAVE LOST THEIR GLLO
Region 2
Give the job to the station sergeants
Hobsons Bay Brimbank Melton Maribyrnong Geelong Wyndham Queenscliffe Surf Coast Ballarat Pyrenees Goldfields Hepburn Moorabool Golden Plains Ararat Nth & Sth Grampians Yarriambiak Horsham West Wimmera Hindmarsh Colac Otway Moyne Glenelg Corangamite Warrnambool
Region 4
No replacement planned
Banyule Manningham Nillumbik Whitehorse Monash Booroondara Knox Maroondah Yarra Ranges Mitchell Murrindindi Delatite Strathbogie Wangaratta Alpine Wodonga Indigo Towonga
WHAT DO GLLOs DO?
“Gay and Lesbian Liaison Officers are specially trained in GLBTL issues
Victoria Police GLLOs can assist by providing discrete, non judgemental advice and assistance in the reporting of crimes.
“GLLOs do not actively investigate the crime. By calling a GLLO, victims can discuss the incident then work out the most suitable process for the matter to be reported. The GLLO can also provide expert advice and assistance to police investigators.
“Members of the GLBTI community, family or friends can contact a GLLO to discuss issues, obtain advice or advise of incidents occurring in the community.”
Victoria Police
WHY WE NEED GLLOs
Before 1981 when homosexuality was decriminalised, police were actively involved in the arrest of members of GLBTI communities. This led to GLBTI communities feeling isolated and reluctant to trust police. So many crimes against gays and lesbians, especially domestic violence and sexual assaults, went unreported.
To try and overcome this, a part time gay and lesbian liaison officer was introduced in 1990, and then, in 2000, Victoria Police appointed its first full time Gay and Lesbian Liaison Officer.
The GLLO position description and appointment was developed through a Victoria Police/Equal Opportunity Commission working group, with representatives of the Victorian Aids Council and the Also Foundation. This group produced a mission statement which says “The Gay and Lesbian Mission is to contribute to the creation of mutual trust between police, lesbians, gay men, bisexuals, transgender and intersex persons so that they may have increasing confidence in police through he provisions of fair and equitable policing service.”
Victoria Police
AT the time we went to press no response was received from either Victorian Police Commissioner Christine Nixon or Police Minister Tim Holding
Update:
On the day the edited version of this article appeared I received a phone call from Tim Holding’s media advisor apologizing for not responding sooner, but ‘the matter has only just been brought to my attention’. He assured me ‘no disrespect was intended’. I invited the minister to respond once he had read the article.
On Friday I spoke to police sources who told me:
• A copy of the article has been scanned and sent to every chief constable in Victoria.
• In Region 4 the hierarchy were ‘backpedalling furiously’ and the sitting GLLO, Lisa Kyte, had been told to remain in post for the time being.
• There is still resistance from Region 2.
• Two gay officers were planning to go to Tim Holding’s favourite restaurant and drop a copy of the paper on the table in front of him tonight.
Apologies for the long time between drinks: I've been a) recuperating after doing the Rainbow Report non-stop for six months b) getting started in my new job as Editor of Melbourne Star and c) trying not to lose my temper over the silly internal politics of a fag radio station, which I won't go into here.
I guess I thought, after ten years in Oz, that the 'tall poppy syndrome', whereby anyone who achieves anything significant immediately becomes a target for any jealous idiot with a metaphorical scythe, was a myth. Now I know better.
But that's by the way: soon I should know if the strenuous efforts on my behalf to blunt the scythes have been successful.
Meantime I now have two editions of Melbourne Star under my belt: edition one had too many all cap headings, edition two, too many mentions of my home 'burb (but I am very proud of the place), next week I start on edition 3.
With any luck someone will get round to updating the website one of these years http://www.bnews.net.au but the current edition is there as a pdf. SO now you can read me there instead of here!
Enjoy!
If you feel it is appropriate, please click on the link below, and please e-mail the authorities in Singapore. I have included the e-mail addresses, subject line, and text below, so that it is a simple matter of copying, pasting, and sending.
http://www.amnesty.org.au/Act_now/action_centre/
singapore_urge_authorities_to_stop_the_execution_of_van_tuong_nguyen
E-mail addresses -
>
lee_hsien_loong@pmo.gov.sg; jayakumar_s@mfa.gov.sg; agc@agc.gov.sg; singapore_hc@bigpond.com
>
Subject line - Van Tuong Nguyen
>
Body of e-mail -
>
Dear Prime Minister, Minister, Attorney General, Your Excellency
>
I am appealing to your Cabinet to urgently reconsider granting clemency to Australian man Van Tuong Nguyen who will otherwise be executed for drug trafficking.
>
I believe the death penalty is the most cruel and inhumane punishment and is an appalling abuse of the most fundamental human right - the right to life. Van Tuong Nguyen is a young man with no prior criminal conviction who does not deserve to pay the ultimate price for this mistake.
>
I understand under Singapore's Constitution, clemency can be granted in rare circumstances and that Van Tuong Nguyen's case fits the criteria - I believe he has always shown remorse, confessed at the earliest opportunity and cooperated fully with the Singaporean authorities and the Australian Federal Police.
>
I urge your government to show compassion and grant clemency to this young man.
>
> Yours sincerely
A couple of offhand remarks lately have made me realise how little people know about what goes on behind the scenes on a program like the Rainbow Report.
One – a seasoned broadcaster – said, ‘People don’t realise how much work you put in – it’s only half an hour on air but two hours preparation.’
Another – a listener and community activist, referred to the quantity and quality of information ‘you provide on the Rainbow Report so effortlessly.’
Stifling my hollow laughter, I said to the latter, I may glide across the airwaves like a swan, but if you look below the water you will see that I’m paddling like fury.
An average day goes something like this:
8am latest. Fire up the computer. Read through all the emails received overnight and reply to any that need a response. Look at all the news alerts I receive from various wire services re: news stories of possible gay interest. Download any interesting stuff I think I might want to use, or might be useful for reference.
9am. Start trawling through my ten favourite gay news service and radio websites for possible stories. Click on any interesting links and download any possible stories and soundbites. Then visit a selection of gay and lesbian websites around the world: my list of favourites contains 9 Australian, 9 European, 6 Asian, 4 African, 4 Middle Eastern, and the grand-daddy of them all, 16 in the USA. That’s 58 websites – not counting the ones where I click through to others to find the story – maybe another 20.
Also during this time: from the diary of upcoming events, requests for interviews, local knowledge, whatever, decide who I’d like on the show today/soon and place calls, send emails, sms’s. Mostly I get voicemail and answering services.
11am. Review what I’ve collected. Decide what fits in the Roundup, what merits a longer piece, what goes on The Spike. Some of them may not be useful directly, but there may be a local angle. For the last couple of days there have been a series of reports from the Gay Lesbian Straight Education Network documenting bullying in US schools on a state by state basis – who should I call locally for comment and comparison with the local situation. Place more calls, emails, sms’s. Write, record and produce Roundup – two versions, one for tonight, one for tomorrows repeat.
12am. Lunch. If no-one’s called back, start to panic. Draft outline script and running order for tonight’s show. Do some chores about the house. Answer phone calls, set up interviews – most people call back during their lunch hour.
1pm. Time out – Divert the phone to the answering machine. Soak in a bath. Read the papers.
2pm. Set off for Joy
2.45 – 3.00 Arrive Joy. Fire up studio 2 and start doing phone interviews. If I have a live guest, that’s only one pre-record. If not, that’s two. The actual interview aired may only be 5 or 6 minutes, but that’s up to half an hours work – getting them online, pre-interview chat, often to relax their nerves, the interview itself, which, unedited, is probably 8-10 minutes long, then wind down, thank them. Sometimes do three or more interviews to get ‘stock’ for future show. Try to have more than I actually need, especially if live guests are scheduled that night – you never know if they’ll show, and as a no-music show, I don’t have the luxury of throwing to a track in an emergency.
4pm. Move to production booth. Finalise the two editions of the Roundup and upload to MD. Edit the pre-records and upload to MD. Any downloaded overseas radio material or contributor material – review, edit, revoice segments where necessary. Pre-record any of my own comment pieces.
5pm. Off to the newsdesk. Finalise running sheet, with timings. Realise I have a couple of gaps. Write the show script with all the linking material. If I have live guests, pre-phone to confirm they’re still available, have right phone number. If not, decide what I’m going to replace them with. Try for another live guest, hope I have a usable pre-record, or plan to pad.
5.45. The script is locked, no matter what. Now open up newswire service and decide what stories I want for the evening news bulletin. Download, craft bulletin script, pre-read bulletin and show script. Correct where necessary. Give program support any info people might ring in for, or warn them if program is likely to be controversial. Brief panel operator.
6.15 – if I’m lucky. Toilet break and cup of tea. Deep breathing
6.30 SHOWTIME!!
