Motor Vehicles (Offensive Advertising) Amendment Bill

Second Reading

Adjourned debate on second reading.

(Continued from 5 December 2018.)

Mr BOYER (Wright) (10:53): I rise to support this bill. At the outset, I would like to acknowledge the member for Reynell for her advocacy on this issue for many years now. I was fortunate in my role as a staffer in the former Labor government to try to help the member for Reynell to do something about this very serious issue and I am pleased to now have an opportunity as a member of this place to speak in favour of the bill she has brought before this place.

The perspective I would like to quickly give on the bill is the perspective of a father with three young girls, one who is five and twins who are three. Parents will know how observant kids at that age are. In fact, one of our favourite games to play in the car now is to spot the yellow car. It has become a very competitive game in my family, and I have been known to drive the block a few more times so that one kid who did not get a chance to find the yellow car gets a chance to spot the yellow car.

I say that by way of highlighting how observant kids of this age are. Although my kids cannot read yet—something I certainly hope to rectify soon—in the coming years they are going to be reading the kinds of slogans that the member for Reynell is fighting in this place to stop being painted and brandished across campers like the Wicked Campers. I feel that in our privileged role as legislators we have the power to do something about this. How, in a civilised society, can we honestly argue that there is any place for these kinds of comments? How do we justify their existence to people, including our children, who see these horrible things painted on vehicles in public places?

Just to give a few examples of the terrible things that are still out there on some of these vehicles, we have 'Drink till she's pretty,' 'A wife: an attachment you screw on the bed to get the housework done,' and, 'I've often wanted to drown my troubles but I can't get my wife to go swimming.' I know very well that in a couple of years—

The SPEAKER: The member for Mawson, are you taking photos in the chamber? I ask you not to, for obvious reasons. The member knows better. Thank you. The member for Wright, please continue.

Mr BOYER: I know that in a few short years my now five year old is going to be asking me questions when she sees those. She is very observant; she asks questions about everything. What am I going to say to her about what those comments mean? Even more importantly, how am I going to explain to her why no-one has taken the opportunity to do anything about it?

Regarding these arguments about free speech, there is free speech and there is hate speech. If some of these comments that I mentioned before are not hate speech, then I wonder what is. There is no place for this kind of stuff in our society. I can only imagine the effect that seeing these comments has on those people who have been victims of sexual violence. What about the people who have to relive those terrible experiences that they have been subjected to every time they pass one of these vehicles? What do we say to them?

Since the member for Reynell introduced this bill, there has been very broad support, I think, in the community for the amendments that are proposed within it. I would like to make special mention of a statement of support from the Coalition of Women's Domestic Violence Services of South Australia, including support from the Zahra Foundation, the Women's Legal Service of South Australia, Collective Shout and the Working Women's Centre—all fantastic groups, all groups that endorse the amendments set out in this bill, as we should, too. All these groups are deeply committed to preventing and ending violence against women and girls and ensuring our community is free from this kind of disrespectful language.

In closing, I acknowledge again the work of the member for Reynell, who has kept at it for years and years now. We now have a bill before the house and I am very pleased to be here and to offer my support. I urge other members to think very carefully about how they vote on this. I urge them to do the right thing and take the opportunity that is afforded to them as legislators to do something about it.

Mr PEDERICK (Hammond) (10:58): I move:

That the debate be adjourned.

The house divided on the motion:

Ayes 24

Noes 17

Majority 7

Motion thus carried; debate adjourned.