The ACT will tomorrow seek to pass a bill banning any practices or therapy aimed at changing a person's sexual or gender identity, but the ACT Law Society and the Association of Christian Schools say the Government's definition of conversion therapy is too broad.
Conversion therapy is based on the theory that a person's gender or sexual identity can be changed or suppressed through practices ranging from psychiatric treatments such as electro-convulsion therapy, to counselling therapies, to spiritual intervention.
Under the bill, practices related to supporting a person who is undergoing or considering a gender transition are not banned. ACT Chief Minister Andrew Barr said his Government had been "consulting with a range of stakeholder groups, both survivors of conversion practices and a wide variety of religious organisations — many of whom have expressed support for the legislation".
"It's not clear in the legislation and the legal advice makes that abundantly clear," Mr Spencer said. AACS is calling for specific amendments to the bill, including limiting the definition of sexuality and conversion practices to health providers, similar to legislation passed recently in Queensland.
Mr Kukulies-Smith said the fact that the exceptions to the definition listed were "twice the length and amount to 50 or 60 per cent of probably what would be covered by the definition, that just does not seem like good law".If the Government pushes ahead with imposing criminal penalties for conversion therapies, the Law Society suggested the offence should be limited to situations that involved coercion, and suggested conversion practices could be controlled through regulation.
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