Australia’s Liberal party stands by candidate who shared anti-gay posts
Allan Green, Liberal party candidate (Facebook)
The Liberal party in Australia has said it will stand by its candidate Allan Green after past anti-gay posts were uncovered.
Green is running as a candidate for the right-wing Liberal party in Greenway in Sydney’s west, and told the Guardian that past anti-gay posts did not reflect his personal views. The Liberal party has reiterated his defence.
In a 2015 Facebook post unearthed by the outlet, Green warned against the introduction of same-sex marriage.
Liberal party candidate Allan Green said there would be no more mother’s and father’s day after marriage equality
“No more mother’s or father’s day!!!” he wrote. “The real consequences of legalising same sex marriage debate. The general public needs to be made aware of them so they can take a considered position on the matter.”
In the same year, he shared a post which suggested he wanted the government to stop using taxpayer funds to pay for the “obscene homosexual Mardi Gras.”
“No more mother’s or father’s day!!! The real consequences of legalising same sex marriage debate.”
– Allan Green, Liberal party candidate
Elsewhere in the same post, Green said: “Children need a mother and father – repeal homosexual adoption and refuse homosexual fostering.”
In a response to the Guardian, Green said the comments did not reflect his personal views, and said he wrote them because he was a Christian Democratic Party (CDP) candidate at the time.
“In that situation you are tied to the policies of the party,” he said. “It isn’t necessarily a personal viewpoint. I wish everybody the best. I haven’t got any ill will to anybody.”
The party has faced a number of controversies over candidates in recent weeks
The Liberal party has experienced a number of setbacks and controversies in recent weeks.
The party was forced to disendorse Melbourne candidate Gurpal Singh after a number of his past comments emerged about gay people and rape victims.
Australian Liberal Party candidate Peter Killin
In 2017, while campaigning against same-sex marriage, Singh told SBS Radio: “Here we are doing something that is against nature.
“Marriage is a legalisation of a sexual relationship between two persons which is male and female predominantly for the reason of progeny and there is no progeny in a gay or lesbian relationship.”
He continued: “I think there is also an issue of paedophilia. In these situations the occurrence can be high.”
Meanwhile, Peter Killin was forced to step down as Liberal party candidate for the seat of Wills in Victoria earlier this month after past anti-gay comments emerged.
Prime Minister Scott Morrison called for his own party to improve its candidate vetting in the wake of the resignation, which follows similar scandals.
He said: “For the Liberal Party in this day and age when there is social media, multiple posting, that represents new challenges in the vetting of candidates.”
