Calls renewed for gay crime compensation

Men convicted for having consensual gay sex before New Zealand changed its law should be compensated for their ruined lives, a group of MPs was repeatedly told yesterday.

Three separate submitters to the justice and electoral select committee raised the subject of compensation while submitting on a bill that will expunge convictions of men who were found guilty of having consensual gay sex before the law change in 1986.

Homosexual sex was legalised in 1986 after a firestorm of protests and counter-protests, but the convictions under the old law still stand.

Despite the law change the men are saddled with a sex conviction which often saw them denied jobs and other opportunities.

This is the first ‘‘expungement scheme’’ in New Zealand.

The bill passed its first reading with the support of all parties in Parliament before the election.

The Justice Ministry believes there are about 1000 men still alive who were convicted under the old law but families could also apply to have their relatives’ convictions expunged.

Former justice minister Amy Adams specifically ruled out compensation when she introduced the bill earlier this year, but new Justice Minister Andrew Little is yet to rule compensation out or in.

Representatives from Young Labour told the committee – which includes Adams – compensation was essential.

‘‘These laws ruined lives and we need to do more than apologise, we need to give something back to them,’’ Young Labour’s Alka Ahirao said.

Young Labour suggested New Zealand look into a model similar to Germany or Canada, which have both set aside considerable sums for compensation.

Germany’s compensation came out to about NZ$5200 for all convicted persons, with additional funding for time spent in prison.

National MP Chris Bishop asked if a model where compensation was instead pooled into a fund for general LGBTI support could be useful. Both Young Labour representatives suggested this could work in addition to but not instead of individual-level compensation.

Law graduate Ted GreensmithWest suggested individual compensation could allow the men, who had so much of their lives taken away, to enjoy the twilight of their lives.

‘‘It would allow them to use their last few years doing things they have never been able to do,’’ Greensmith-West said.

Veteran LGBT activist Bill Logan has earlier called for compensation.

‘‘So many people were forced into unnecessarily small lives. The hurt was enormous. The number of lives which were completely wrecked by these laws, which were a reflection of social attitudes at the time. Parliament was a part of that,’’ Logan said.

‘‘We can always find plenty of money to bail out banks when they collapse. But we can’t seem to find money for the actual social debts that we have for being evil to people.’’

Little said he didn’t want to bypass the select committee process.