Rights advocate opposes Australian vote on same-sex marriage
CANBERRA, Australia – A leading gay rights advocate and former judge has urged Parliament to prevent a public referendum on legalizing gay marriage in Australia.
Michael Kirby is a former High Court judge who headed a United Nations inquiry into human rights abuses in North Korea and is in a same-sex relationship. He wrote in The Australian newspaper on Tuesday that a popular vote against gay marriage would likely set back the cause of marriage equality for decades.
Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull went to elections in July promising to hold a referendum by the end of this year.
The opposition promised to allow Parliament to decide the issue if it won power.
Opposition leader Bill Shorten will not commit Labor to blocking the referendum in the Senate.
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