Louise Pratt (WA, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

nator PRATT (—) (): Gather, dream, amplify—the WorldPride motto was certainly upheld last week at the Sydney WorldPride Human Rights Conference in Sydney. The conference upheld a wide variety of issues, but four key pillars were: community and culture, justice and freedom, health and wellbeing, and visibility and inclusion.

The keynote speaker, Victor Madrigal-Borloz, the United Nations independent expert on sexual orientation and gender identity, reminded us all that, while human beings are all born free and equal in dignity and rights, in many countries, LGBTQIA+ people continue to face persecution simply because of who they are. So, today, on International Women's Day, it's important to highlight the links between the drivers of gender based discrimination and violence and the drivers of this same discrimination against LGBTQIA+ communities.

We heard from many speakers, LGBTQIA+ leaders, ambassadors, parliamentarians, First Nations people, health experts, youth, researchers and rights activists from intersex and trans communities the world over. The trauma that communities have faced in oppressive nations is very real. It's a result of rejection, exclusion, violence and discrimination, worsened by opportunistic and deliberate scare campaigns.

While we were reminded of how much we still must do, we were heartened by the Australian government's groundbreaking announcements, including the new equality fund and the 10-year National Action Plan for the Health and Wellbeing of LGBTIQ+ People. I thank Equality Australia for their incredible vision and their success in hosting this conference.