Renewed push to ban 'conversion practices' in Tasmania

Rosalie Woodruff with her party's bill to ban conversion practices in Tasmania, which she expects to be voted on in parliament by the end of the year. (ABC News: Kate Nickels) The Tasmanian Greens will soon bring a bill to the state parliament that would ban conversion practices. Conversion practices are any attempt to change, suppress or eradicate an individual's sexual orientation or gender identity. A vote on the proposed legislation is expected by the end of the year. Link copiedShareShare articleIn 1997, Tasmania became the last Australian state to decriminalise homosexuality. The arrests, protests and discrimination that led up to that historic moment are looked upon with shame by many. Once condemned by the United Nations for its homophobic laws, Tasmania has led the nation with some of its inclusive legislation. Rodney Croome has been at the heart of the campaign for change. After more than 30 years of fighting for the rights of LGBTQIA+ Tasmanians, Mr Croome said he felt like there was one final frontier — so-called conversion practices. "They go to the heart of the problem," he said. Rodney Croome was arrested in 1988 for operating a Tasmanian gay law reform stall at Hobart's Salamanca Market. (Supplied: Roger Lovell) Conversion practices are any attempt to change, suppress or eradicate an individual's sexual orientation or gender identity. They have been banned in all jurisdictions except Western Australia, the Northern Territory and Tasmania. "Many Tasmanians were deeply embarrassed that it took us so long to decriminalise homosexuality," Mr Croome, from Equality Tasmania, said. "Here we are again, risking being the last state to pass an important reform." Rodney Croome says banning conversion practices is an "important reform". (ABC News: Owain Stia James) The Tasmanian Greens have spent years working on a bill to end the practice, taking inspiration from the laws of other states. They believe this bill offers the best chance yet of finally banning conversion practices — and they're hoping to put it to a vote in September. Research from La Trobe and Macquarie universities found that one in 20 LGBTQIA+ Tasmanians has been subjected to conversion practices. Three Australians who underwent conversion "therapy" to change their sexual orientation say there was nothing therapeutic about what happened to them, as they call for a ban on the practice. Those individuals were three-and-a-half times more likely than other members of the queer community to be diagnosed with PTSD and almost four times more likely to attempt suicide. Bronwyn Larkins and Glenn Worrell know first-hand the damage the practices can inflict. "It's not just convincing us that we're wrong," Ms Larkins said. "It's convincing us that we're broken or damaged or less than." Ms Larkins was 16 years old when her mother sent her to hypnotherapy. "Still today, I know I'm affected by it." Bronwyn Larkins says being sent to hypnotherapy at age 16 affected her mental and physical health. (ABC News: Luke Bowden) Mr Worrell is also still "very much struggling" years later. "One of the basic premises is that you are deeply flawed and that you need to be fixed," he said. They have both spent years advocating for a ban on conversion practices so others don't have to suffer as they did. "I didn't have that opportunity. I needed to be always someone else, someone different. "I went through 21 years of trying to be different, and that doesn't go away really." Glen Worrell says he doesn't want others to go through what he went through. (ABC News: Luke Bowden) Tasmania was the first jurisdiction where conversion practices were raised as an issue. Mr Croome, who raised the issue, said it was frustrating that the state was now risking being last, but his concern is not just about reputation. "The other great risk from being one of the last states to ban conversion practices is that there will be conversion practitioners from other states who come here to inflict those practices on young Tasmanians because they've been thrown out of their mainland state," he said. Rodney Croome at the site of the 1988 Salamanca Market stall where he was arrested. (Jane Lee) The Tasmanian Law Reform Institute released a report in 2022, which found conversion practices were still happening in Tasmania and had caused "severe harm" to people. Bron survived repeated sessions of gay conversion attempts under the instruction of her mother but it took a heavy toll. She says a new draft bill proposed for Tasmania will do nothing to stop such "therapy" from continuing. Premier Jeremy Rockliff soon backed the report, confirming he supported a ban on conversion practices. "I understand how much it has affected individuals to the detriment of their wellbeing, to put it mildly," he told a parliamentary committee in 2022. But the legislation Attorney-General Guy Barnett introduced in 2023 was criticised by advocates as having too many loopholes an

Renewed push to ban 'conversion practices' in Tasmania

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Renewed push to ban 'conversion practices' in Tasmania

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