EIGHT YEARS LEAD-IN TIME FOR HETEROS, EIGHT MONTHS LEAD-IN TIME FOR HOMOS, AND THE GOVERNMENT ISN'T HOMOPHOBIC?????

EIGHT YEARS LEAD-IN TIME FOR HETEROS, EIGHT MONTHS LEAD-IN TIME FOR HOMOS, AND THE GOVERNMENT ISN’T HOMOPHOBIC?????

18 May 2009

It seems Lesbian and Gay Solidarity, Melbourne is not the only group showing concerns about the proposed budget 2009 measure which will see the pension age rise from 65 to 67 but only commence in 8 years time – in 2017, according to the government’s figures.

Changes to same-sex relationship legislation, passed through parliament in December 2008 will commence in July 2009, allowing 8 months for people who have been discriminated against all their lives for being gay, lesbian, transgender, HIV/AIDS (GLTH) members of the community.

This is not just a case of double standards – the Treasurer and the Prime Minister have uttered all sorts of justifications for the pension age changes to occur later rather than sooner – to allow people to adjust – but have refused to grandfather the legislation concerning elderly and disabled GLTH people, because it will make differentiations in those receiving benefits.

Do you hear the hypocrisy ringing in your ears??

Be sure of one thing – GLTH pensioners still have the vote and know how to mark their papers when they go into the polling booths around the country and many have long memories too!

And to add further to the contempt in which the current government holds GLTH people, the latest Centrelink advertisements for telling us that couples are couples – the blatant lie continues! – now show two sets of towels in place of the toothbrushes!

It is not only crass, it is downright insulting!

We always knew that the ALP was homophobic, but we didn’t know how bad they were until this whole episode started in 2008 – and the Rudd government is doing us favours?

We want equality, and equality only has one meaning, unlike in Dr Verwoerd’s South Africa where the Bantustans were “separate but equal”! Rudd’s Australia perpetuates the Verwoerd myth of “separate but equal”.