|
|
|
Sexpo Patrons asked to Lobby the Premier |
|
Queensland consumers of adult erotica will be asked to send a
personal message about sex to Premier Peter Beattie when they attend
Sexpo this week.
Australia's national adult industry association, the Eros Association,
has set up a bank of computers, all hot-wired to deliver an email to
the Premier from those who are sick of government intervention in their
bedrooms. Eros is inviting people to express their feelings about
Queensland’s
draconian censorship laws and to ask the Premier to bring them into
line with the National Classification Code, thereby allowing
Queenslanders access to the same material as the rest of Australia.
Eros
spokesperson Fiona Patten said that Queensland currently has
Australia’s most repressive and draconian censorship laws. “In fact,
they are the most repressive censorship laws of any western democracy”,
she said. “Queensland is also the only state that does not recognise
and regulate its adult shops. Other states have ‘restricted premises’
legislation preventing entry to minors. In Queensland if a 14 year old
boy walks into an adult shop, the government has not given the shop
owner the legislative power to kick him out”. Ms Patten said that this
gave rise to the alarming possibility that a minor could sue an adult
shop owner for discrimination. Queensland is also the only state in
Australia where adult magazines, that are legally available in
newsagents in all other states, are banned and those found selling them
could even be sent to gaol.
Despite the plethora of wowserish
legislation, Queenslanders appear to enjoy watching nonviolent erotica
in numbers. Through its Sex in Australia study (2003) La Trobe
University researchers found that over 25% of Queensland adults
regularly watched X rated films. Over 100 adult shops now operate in
Queensland with many more adult internet and party plan businesses also
in operation in the state. Queensland has more adult outlets per capita
than any other state in Australia.
Ms Patten said that Eros
wanted the government to allow adults legal access to Federally
classified, non-violent erotic material in Queensland. “X rated films
and magazines contain no
violence at all and no demeaning
behaviour”, she said. “All they can depict is adults having consenting
sex. In 2002, and on behalf of the people of Queensland, the Queensland
Attorney General approved the latest set of Guidelines for the X
classification. His signature on the authorisation meant that the
Guidelines were acceptable to Australians living in Queensland. He did
this while presiding over a ban on X rated videos in his own state. He
can’t have it both ways,” she said.
In Queensland it is legal to
possess and legal to buy X rated films but illegal to sell them – the
perfect legislative mix for breeding black markets, according to Ms
Patten. In the past tens of thousands of Queenslanders have signed
paper petitions at Sexpo requesting law reform and organisers expect
thousands to take up the opportunity of emailing their request direct
to Mr Beattie.
For further information contact Fiona Patten 0413 734 613
Sexpo Patrons Asked to Lobby Premier via the Internet
23/02/05 Media Release
PO Box 69 Deakin West ACT 2600 Ph 02 6285 2477 Fax 02 6282 1499 www.eros.org.au
This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it
|
|
|
Sign up for our Sexy Newsletter - Don't miss out on the best Adult
Dating Opportunities and Sexy Gossip. Simply enter you email below & we'll
email you updates.
Receive the latest & hottest swinger updates online.
|
