Source: Canberra Times, AFP, The Australian, ABC News (Australia)
SYDNEY -- Right-wing Australian Christian groups Monday welcomed a decision by a local territory government to abandon its plans to legalize same-sex civil union ceremonies after intervention from the Labor government of Prime Minister Kevin Rudd.

But some members of parliament from Rudd's own party blasted the federal intervention.

The Australian Capital Territory (ACT) government, home to the national capital, wanted to introduce civil partnerships legislation that would have allowed gay couples to hold ceremonies legally recognizing their relationship.

But the ACT was forced to water down the proposal after the Rudd's center-left federal government said Sunday it would override any such legislation on the grounds that such unions would too closely resemble marriage.

The ACT government will now introduce laws under which gay couples can formally register their relationships, but any ceremony will have no legal recognition.

The Australian Christian Lobby group said it was pleased the federal government had become involved.

"We can't allow marriage to become a political trophy for two percent of the population," head of the group Jim Wallace told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation.

ACT Attorney-General Simon Corbell said today the Rudd government had kowtowed to conservative Christians.

"My view of that is they have been beholden to the extreme right of the Christian lobby in Australia,'' Corbell told ABC Radio.

"They feel that it's more important to satisfy their views than accept that the ACT is self-governing and has the right to make these laws for itself.''

Corbell also confirmed the prime minister was involved in the negotiation process.

A Canberra same-sex couple, who would only give their first names, Liz and Jodie, expressed disappointment to a Canberra Times reporter at the Rudd Government's position. Liz, 34, said she was "quite devastated" by the news that the ACT Bill would no longer go ahead.

"It's very disappointing that we're not going to be supported in having our relationships recognized in the same way as the relationships of the rest of our family and friends," she said.

The couple have two daughters, aged three and one. Jodie, 37, said she wanted to know why the rights of "this working family" weren't equal to everybody else's.

"We are the same as everybody else. We pay taxes like everybody else. We are ordinary working people living a domestic life there is nothing outrageous about us. We want the very same bland rights that everybody else has."

Gay lobby groups such as Good Process and the Canberra-based Campaigns for Civil Unions have expressed deep disappointment at the Rudd Government's opposition to same-sex civil unions.

Good Process member Heidi Yates said while she welcomed McClelland's commitment last Wednesday to remove discrimination from about 100 federal laws, it was not the end of the matter.

"Until there's full equality in Australian law, and that includes The Marriage Act, and until same-sex and opposite sex couples both have the same options, the discrimination and prejudice will continue."

Members of Rudd's Labor party also raised concerns Monday that the veto threat flies in the face of a mandate the Stanhope government has from Canberra voters to introduce the legal reforms.

Northern Territory Labor President Trish Crossin, who is also a senator, said she could not support the use of Commonwealth (federal) powers to intervene in a territory’s laws.

"I think the layperson would fail to understand why you can have a democratically elected government that is treated different from the other states," she told The Australian Online.

"No matter what the issue is we would certainly take the view coming from a territory that we have a right to govern itself. For us, when you come from the territory you get a little bit parochial about their rights."

Chief Minister Jon Stanhope launched a scathing attack on the Rudd Government  on what he described as "a dreadful day for the Australian Labor Party".

Stanhope said the attitude of Prime Minister Kevin Rudd and federal Attorney-General Robert McClelland towards same-sex civil unions was no different to that of their Liberal predecessors, John Howard and Philip Ruddock, Canberra Times reports.

"I don't believe for one minute that by recognizing gay and lesbian relationships under the law, we are in any way diminishing marriage," he said. "It's my 36th wedding anniversary tomorrow. Recognizing the loving relationship of [Labor MLA] Andrew Barr does not diminish my marriage one iota and I challenge anybody to suggest it does."

Stanhope told a news conference he was embarrassed that his federal Labor colleagues would both deny human rights of gay and lesbian people within his community, and show disrespect for the democratic rights of the people of the ACT.

"At both levels, Prime Minister Rudd has failed dismally," he said.

Housing Minister Tanya Plibersek who has campaigned for gay and lesbian rights in the past, declined to endorse the intervention when contacted by The Australian Online.

Labor MP Julia Irwin from the state of New South Wales, which includes Sydney, said she also had concerns.

"I don’t believe in the intervening once a territory has made that decision," she said.

The Australian could not get in touch with ACT senator Kate Lundy and Labor MP Bob McMullan. That prompted charges of cowardice.

"I am appalled at their gutlessness over this issue. They lined up three deep in 2006 to condemn the arrogance of the Howard government for telling the ACT which laws it could enact and they now they sheepishly endorse this," ACT Senator Gary Humphries said today.

Despite its name, Australia's Liberal party is generally the more conservative of the country's two main parties, with closer ties to the country's Christian-right activists. Former Prime Minister John Howard, a Liberal, twice vetoed similar civil union measures passed by the ACT local government.

Senator Humphries, a former ACT chief minister said it was an issue beyond gay rights, illustrating that self-government for the ACT, which was granted in 1988, was being trampled on.

"Usually in politics there’s a fig leaf of difference between the circumstances that allow a government to back flip from what they did in opposition. There’s no fig leaf here," he said.

Full article: Labor 'gutless' over same sex unions | Australian
Christians welcome Australian backdown on gay civil unions | AFP
Christian Lobby welcomes same-sex backdown | ABC News
PM 'fails dismally' on gay rights | Canberra Times