Clarke aims to legislate morality

Clarke told me abortion is murder
By Paola Totaro and Robert Wainwright, Sydney Morning Herald
10 September 2005

The upper house MP and Liberal Party powerbroker David Clarke has argued that women who undergo abortions should be punished under the criminal law as if they had committed murder, according to a former senior Liberal Party official.

Mr Clarke also suggested that given the Bible regards homosexuality as a sin, the law should reflect this, according to a statutory declaration signed by the official, who has also been a member of the Liberal Party for three decades.

According to the statement, the party member - who has been a candidate for a federal seat - had a lengthy telephone conversation with Mr Clarke in late February 2001.

"During this conversation David Clarke asked me several questions regarding my views on issues including homosexuality, abortion and assisted suicide," the
declaration states. "David Clarke in response to my answers, proffered his views on these topics."

"In relation to the issue of abortion David Clarke said words to the effect: 'As the foetus is a human being, isn't abortion the same as murder; murder is a criminal offence which deserves punishment by imprisonment. Surely women who have an abortion are committing murder and should also be punished accordingly.'

"In relation to the discussion on homosexuality, David Clarke said words to the effect: 'The Bible has made it very clear this is a sin, shouldn't our laws reflect this; it is a crime and should be treated as such.'

"My response to this was words to the effect ... 'We can't legislate morality."'

This week, Mr Clarke has insisted that he does not want homosexuality recriminalised. He has restated that he is pro-life and does not apologise for this.

The statutory declaration's author would have been happy to be identified but did not want their employer politicised.

The existence of the declaration has emerged at the same time as a 30-year-old secret list, published originally in the Herald in 1978, which detailed the political sympathies of more than 120 Liberal Party members of the time,
including the new kingmaker of NSW party politics, David Clarke.

The papers revealed the tactics used by far-right Liberal Party members to identify opponents and recruit supporters during a bitter internal factional war. A hand-written copy of the papers was archived in the State Library.

According to the article, the lists represented a system of reporting in code, known internally as UMI 4277, which detailed the political leanings of each party member. These were used by the far-right in the battle for control of party branches and the executive.

The lists provided a key to six symbols, placed beside names, which labelled members with words ranging from "inimicus" - hostile or harmful - to "IS", meaning inner
sanctum. The papers assessed that the far right group controlled "wholly or almost wholly" 25 branches and federal electorate conferences and had major influence in a
further 21, and "penetrated" another 21.

Yesterday, Mr Clarke remembered an "anonymous smear list which was put out, and was not authorised".