Audio from the second reading of the Sullivan Birth Certificate Bill. It was introduced into Parliament by Louisa Wall and read for a second time on 19 February 2014. The Bill passed its second reading unanimously.
Summary
The Sullivan Birth Certificate Bill had its second reading in the New Zealand Parliament on February 19, 2014. The bill was introduced by MP Louisa Wall and sought to address the specific situation of Rowan Sullivan, whose birth certificate initially could not legally reflect the reality of Rowan's parentage due to existing laws. Rowan was born to Diane Sullivan and Doreen Shields, who were a same-sex couple. Following Diane Sullivan's death, Doreen Shields legally adopted Rowan, resulting in the removal of Diane's name from the birth certificate.
The bill aimed to amend Rowan's birth registration to include both parents' names, effectively reflecting Rowan's upbringing by both Diane Sullivan and Doreen Shields, thus recognizing the bond and reality of their family life. This move would also align the law with changes made by the Status of Children Act and the Marriage Amendment Act, passed in the previous year, which enabled same-sex couples to marry and jointly adopt children.
Parliamentarians across party lines recognized the nature of the bill as a private one, addressing a unique situation that could not be fixed through general legislation due to the specific circumstances of Rowan Sullivan's birth and parentage. Amendments proposed by the Select Committee were discussed, including one to change the bill's name to the Sullivan Birth Registration Bill to more accurately reflect its content.
Parliament acknowledged the emotional journey of Rowan and Doreen Shields, from the intimidating process of appealing to a select committee, to the grateful realization that the committee understood and valued their family's circumstances. Members praised Wall's ability to move the Parliament towards a compassionate response, dealing with both broad human rights issues and the individual rights and dignity of Rowan Sullivan's family.
The entire proceedings were marked by expressions of understanding and support for the Sullivan family. The bill was ultimately supported unanimously, demonstrating New Zealand's progress in recognizing diverse family structures and reflecting modern attitudes towards same-sex parenting in the law. The recording of the proceedings captured a moment of legislative action centered on family, identity, and the obligation of the state to protect these valuable societal pillars through just and representative lawmaking.
This summary is created using Generative AI. Although it is based on the recording's transcription, it may contain errors or omissions. Click here to learn more about how this summary was created.
Voices
Tags
2010s, aotearoa new zealand, carol beaumont, children, chris auchinvole, denis o'rourke, diane sullivan, doreen shields, family, human rights, jami-lee ross, kanwaljit singh bakshi, kevin hague, lesbian, louisa wall, melissa lee, moana mackey, parents, parliament buildings, parliament tv, paul hutchison, politics, poto williams, rowen sullivan, ruth dyson, scott simpson, sullivan birth certificate bill (2013), wellington
Tags (computer generated)
1960s, actions, adoption, advice, anger, australia, birth certificate, birthday, board, bravery, capital, celebrant, change, charity, chinese, chris campbell, civil unions, class, close to home, community, conflict, courage, covenant, culture, data, death, declaration, democracy, denial, desire, difference, dignity, discrimination, diversity, divorce, documentary, donation, education, eleanor roosevelt, equality, ethnicity, events, faith, family values, farm, film, fitness, france, freedom, friends, funeral, future, gallery, gay, gender, government, growing up, hate, hell, heterosexual, history, hit, hope, horse, hospital, identity, india, individual, injustice, job, journey, justice, knowledge, korea, law, leadership, legislation, library, listening, loss, love, margaret shields, marriage, marriage equality, national identity, nature, new zealand first, news, opportunity, other, parenting, parties, passing, people, podcast, power, pregnancy, privacy, privilege, radio, reading, recognition, relationships, respect, school, sea, select committee, sex, sexual orientation, siblings, sin, sleep, smile, social, space, speech, stigma, straight, strength, stuff, submission, support, technology, time, transition, trust, unions, universal human rights, values, vote, wind, women, work