28th November, 2011

More than 85,000 people have signed a petition calling on the Australian Labor Party not to change it's definition of marriage ahead of next weekend's national ALP conference.

The petition was established by the Australian Christian Lobby (ACL) and the Australian Family Association. Jim Wallace, managing director of the ACL, says he hopes the petition will reach 100,000 signatures by the weekend.

“The petition will send a clear message to the ALP Conference that marriage is a vote changing issue for many Australians and they want governments to politically support a family structure that confirms the importance of motherhood and fatherhood in a child’s life,” he says.

The petition, addressed to conference delegates, states that "Marriage is the union of one man and one woman, voluntarily entered into for life" and goes on to say that the institution of marriage is "vital to the well-being of all in society".

"In particular it confirms the importance of motherhood and fatherhood and seeks to protect children's biological identity," says the petition. "It has a meaning that we hold deeply for its cultural, religious and social significance."

It urges the delegates not to redefine marriage to admit relationships to which "it does not naturally or historically apply".

You can find the petition at http://australianmarriage.org.au/petition/. To hear Jim Wallace's views on the issue, you can listen to an ACL recording here...

- DAVID ADAMS