Thursday, 23 February 2023

Freedom of speech

Renee HEATH (Eastern Victoria) (09:56): The bedrock of democracy is freedom – freedom of speech, religion, press and assembly and the right to petition the government. Just because you hate what somebody is saying does not make them guilty of hate speech. We must remember this in the political sphere. Politics should not be about dictating the lifestyle, belief systems and choices of Victorians. Politics should not be driven by fear. Politics is the contest of ideas, and we need to debate them respectfully. We should not be afraid to face the very subjects that offend us. We either value freedom or we do not. The sign of a crumbling society is the erosion of these rights. True equality is not lopsided. Freedom guarantees that everybody has the right to debate their ideas without any fear of retaliation or censorship. It is the same right that allows you to march in a Mardi Gras or worship freely. This government’s job is not to dictate the views of some citizens and censor the views of others. I implore this chamber to raise the standard of respect regardless of our personal beliefs. I implore this chamber to not shy away from facts, even if it is going to hurt our personal feelings. No argument should be off the table, because we are not fighting for ourselves, we are fighting for the future and the freedom of Victorians. If we undermine freedom –

The PRESIDENT: Sorry, your time has expired. I really appreciate Mr McGowan approaching me about his members statement. I said before, I will not pull people up on time when they are doing a condolence, because I think it is an ordinary thing for me to do. But it is not just Mr McGowan, it has been others that have gone way over time. So if we can keep our members statements to 90 seconds, I would very much appreciate it.