The NSW government has accepted all of the recommendations of an inquiry into historical gay hate crimes.
Launched in 2022, the special inquiry investigated the unsolved deaths of LGBTIQ+ people in NSW between 1970 and 2010.
Released in December 2023, a 3,500-page report found police investigations were hindered by “homophobia, transphobia and prejudice”.
In a statement, the NSW government said: “We will honour the victims and victim-survivors whose pain has been captured by the inquiry through the implementation of all 19 recommendations.”
Among the recommendations was a determination that the NSW police reinvestigate unsolved homicides. This will involve a review of evidence and – using modern technology – forensic tests.
“We commend the NSW government for its response to the special commission of inquiry,” said Dr Justin Koonin – president of NSW health organisation ACON.
The inquiry examined four decades of systemic violence and prejudice against members of the LGBTIQ+ community for which – as recommended by the commission – the NSW government has formally apologised.
“We welcome the statement of apology, which recognises the pain, suffering and trauma experienced by victims, survivors, loved ones and broader LGBTIQ communities,” Koonin said. “The release of the government’s response and apology signals a critical juncture in our ongoing journey towards justice, healing, and equality. We know that true progress from here will require a keen focus on translating the important commitments made today into tangible outcomes for our communities.”
Through testimonies, the gay hate crime commission heard of the hurt and trauma that continues to affect members of the LGBTIQ+ community and the distrust it has to this day of government services. “Its findings have highlighted the pressing need for comprehensive reforms to ensure that such tragedies and failings are never repeated,” Koonin said.
Among the reforms: the establishment of a taskforce to oversee the implementation of police-related recommendations, as well as an LGBTIQ+ consultative committee to work alongside the taskforce to ensure that the recommendations are implemented in a timely manner.
“Action on other recommendations is underway or will be implemented following further planning or technological advances,” reads the government’s statement.
Thanking the commission for re-examining “a dark passage in the history of our state”, leader of the government in the Legislative Council Penny Sharpe said: “This inquiry, the events that have led to it and those that will follow, will be remembered as a crucial step in coming to terms with the role that the NSW government played in these many tragedies.”
She added: “In previous decades, NSW government institutions set a standard that not only stood by inequality and injustice, but fostered, and at times participated in it. We fundamentally failed the victims of these hate crimes and their families, and we can never let that occur again.”
Acknowledging that the commission’s four-volume report made for “difficult reading”, police minister Yasmin Catley said: “We cannot change what has happened in the past but we can and will do everything in our power to learn, evolve and prevent history from repeating itself.”
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