Soper Lesley: Human Rights (Women in Armed Forces) Amendment Bill — Third Reading 
Soper Lesley: Human Rights (Women in Armed Forces) Amendment Bill — Third Reading 
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LESLEY SOPER (Labour) 
: 
 As a Labour MP who started her inaugural parliamentary speech by stating that she stood here as a proud southern woman a feminist and the previous women’s vice-president of the Labour Party I am delighted to join with the Minister of Women’s Affairs the Hon Lianne Dalziel and my colleague Lynne Pillay in speaking on the third reading of the Human Rights (Women in Armed Forces) Amendment Bill. 
Lynne Pillay the member for Waitakere is to be particularly commended for bringing this matter before the House as a member’s bill and all my Government colleagues are to be thanked for supporting its adoption as a Government bill especially the Hon Mark Burton the Minister of Justice and the Hon Phil Goff the Minister of Defence. 
Some may say that this bill brings a small change and in one way that is true. The bill amends the Human Rights Act 1993 in order to remove an exemption for sexual discrimination in employment matters that applies to the armed forces. At the time the Human Rights Act was enacted the New Zealand Defence Force had a policy of not allowing women to serve in combat roles. That policy was formally rescinded by Defence Force Order 05/2000. So for years now the Defence Force has very sensibly turned a blind eye to the ability to ban women from combat roles. The leadership of the Defence Force deserves credit for that. 
There is no reason in strategic tactical or common-sense terms to leave section 33 of the Human Rights Act in place. The Foreign Affairs Defence and Trade Committee carefully considered the bill and made a unanimous recommendation for amendment and the bill has wide cross-party support. It is a small change already done in practice but a very large one indeed in terms of symbolic significance and in terms of the important underlying presumption that no New Zealander should be discriminated against on the basis of any of the characteristics defined in the Human Rights Act. Attitudes and practices have moved on. New Zealand has been a leader in that many times and here we are leading again. 
I want to dwell for just a moment on New Zealand’s long and proud record in the recognition and promotion of the rights of women at home and internationally. We were the first country where women won the right to vote in 1893. Since that time we have passed a long list of laws of which we can be exceptionally proud laws designed to protect human rights for women and for all New Zealanders; Acts such as the Human Rights Act the Care of Children Act the Parental Leave and Employment Protection Act the Civil Union Act the Relationships (Statutory References) Act the New Zealand Sign Language Act and I want to mention sadly the Employment Equity Act in particular which was passed with such hope by a Labour Government and almost instantly repealed by a National Government. Perhaps that last example really brings home how long it takes to change the attitudes culture and behaviours that lead to discrimination. 
We still have areas of equality for women to achieve in New Zealand. One of the greatest lags still is in the area of equal pay for work of equal value. A stubborn gender gap remains but this Government has started the steps towards addressing that. In the meantime all women’s organisations I am sure will join with me in celebrating that at last New Zealand will be able to fully meet its international obligations in relation to the rights of women. With the passing of this legislation our last remaining reservation under the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women commonly known as CEDAW can be removed and this Government will move quickly to do that. 
The convention is the international bill of rights for women adopted by the UN in 1979. States that commit to the convention undertake to end discrimination against women in all forms to incorporate the principle of gender equality in their legal system to abolish all discriminatory laws and to ensure the elimination of all acts of discrimination against women by persons organisations or enterprises. New Zealand reports on the convention have until now had to include a reservation because of section 33. Now we are in a position to give the convention its rightful unqualified support; unqualified support that says women like men can enjoy all their human rights and fundamental freedoms. 
In the 30 years since the integration of women into the Defence Force there has been a slow growth in the percentage of servicewomen in it. It may actually get to about 20 percent overall by 2016. Many outstanding servicewomen have built brilliant careers in the services mostly in the traditional areas such as nursing. Our servicewomen have played an integral and vital role in the operations of our armed forces. This legislation will not mean a sudden flood of extra women in non-traditional roles but it will serve to say even more loudly and clearly that women have a fully equal role to play in our armed forces and in important peacekeeping activities around the world. 
We are now removing the last barrier to front-line combat roles. The armed forces have themselves recognised that changes need to be made to make this a reality. Women in the armed forces have risen to every challenge and done great credit to themselves. I say to Sue Kedgley and to others that yes this is about choice a free open and real choice that does not mean just a choice to kill; it means peacekeeping and rebuilding as well. In that arena New Zealanders both our women and our men have shown again and again that they can shine and that New Zealand can punch far above its weight in any armed force task it is asked to perform. 
This law says that the door is open wide and will never close. It serves to reinforce all the work done already within our armed forces to attract and retain career women who can aim right to the top. My niece in the armed forces who has been deployed overseas and others of her generation know that they can do the job and even more important that they are welcomed and supported to do it in any theatre where New Zealand needs to operate. 
The member for Waitakere the select committee and the Minister have done well by this bill. Its purpose was a good one. Its results are something to be proud of. It is another long step on the way forward. Any discrimination on the basis of gender must be a thing of the past and we can consign another bit of discrimination where it belongs today.