Conversion Practices

The Hon. M. EL DANNAWI (15:08): My question is to the Attorney-General.

Members interjecting:

The PRESIDENT: Order! I would like to hear the Hon. Ms El Dannawi.

The Hon. M. EL DANNAWI: Will the Attorney-General inform the council about the government's ban on conversion practices, which commences today?

The Hon. R.A. Simms: Hear, hear!

The PRESIDENT: I call the Attorney-General. I thought the Hon. Mr Simms was going to answer the question.

The Hon. R.A. Simms: I was supporting it, Mr President.

The PRESIDENT: The Hon. Mr Simms, it is not a conversation.

The Hon. K.J. MAHER (Minister for Aboriginal Affairs, Attorney-General, Minister for Industrial Relations and Public Sector, Special Minister of State) (15:08): I thank the honourable member for her question and I thank members of this chamber who were instrumental and supportive of the legislation passing this chamber and those who were strong advocates in the lower house chamber. It is with a great deal of pride that I inform the council about the very important laws that commenced today, banning harmful conversion practices in South Australia.

Members will recall the day in this place in September last year when the parliament passed these laws that banned conversion practices. As many know, conversion practices are insidious and hurtful practices that target members of the LGBTIQA+ community and are employed by individuals or groups seeking either to change or suppress a person's sexual orientation or gender identity.

Under the new laws, perpetrators convicted of causing serious harm through the performance of conversion practices will face up to five years in jail, with people convicted of taking or arranging to have someone taken interstate or engaging a person from outside of the state to provide conversion practices facing up to three years in jail, a fine of up to $15,000, or both.

The laws have been modelled on those that passed last year in New South Wales and make clear that discussions between children and their parents, as well as the general expressions of religious belief and religious teaching, do not constitute conversion practices. As many would recall, the path to these reforms isn't always an easy one, and I am proud to say that this government's election commitment has now come to fruition.

In the lead-up to the passing of these laws, there were many remarkable, brave and fierce advocates and victim survivors who played a pivotal role, but today I would like to make mention of one person in particular who has been a long-time advocate for these changes. Jace Reh spent six years at a religious school where he was forced into activities that tried to change his sexuality and shamed for being transgender and queer. Speaking of his experience of conversion practices, Jace has said:

Still to this day those voices run around in my head, and they tell me that what I'm choosing to do is wrong and a crime to God. If I could have prayed it away, it would have happened—it's a long time of telling myself, 'Stop thinking your gay thoughts and God will forgive you,' and yet I am still here today, trans and queer.

Since that harrowing experience nearly a decade ago, Jace continues to be a powerful advocate for the rights of the LGBTIQA+ community, and his voice during the conversion practices legislation here was central to helping these changes being ushered through. I would personally like to thank Jace and all the other victim survivors for their strength and advocacy and for turning what is a traumatic life-altering experience of harm into good, ensuring others don't have to experience the same thing.

It was with great pleasure that last week I spent some time with Jace on the corner of Light Square where the Rainbow Walk immortalises historic policy and legal reforms in this area and we looked on at the latest edition, 2024, where it recognises the passing of these laws by this parliament. I would also like to thank, in particular, the South Australian Rainbow Advocacy Alliance (SARAA), and Equality Australia for their invaluable work in helping shape this legislation and making it a reality that comes into effect today.

I recall the words that the New South Wales Labor Attorney General said after these similar laws passed in New South Wales parliament last year. Michael Daley is an old-school New South Wales Labor-right Catholic Attorney-General, but I distinctly remember, when these laws passed New South Wales, he was quoted on national radio as saying what these laws do is say to everyone, 'We love you just the way you are.' While I hope that these new laws don't need to be used, I truly hope that they send a very, very loud and clear message to our entire community to say, 'You are loved and perfect exactly the way you are.'