Andrews Backs Out of Right Wing Family Conference

Social Services Minister Kevin Andrews has pulled out of the opening ceremony of the controversial World Congress of Families conference in Melbourne tomorrow.

Andrews released a short statement announcing his decision, just days after the group that is running the conference named him as its 2014 Natural Family Man of the Year.

Andrews said that he intended to speak at the controversial event because “tolerance is a critical value in a western liberal democracy like Australia”, but that a change in hosts had led him to rethink his decision.

“It was for this reason that I intended to address the World Congress of Families meeting in Melbourne tomorrow,” Andrews said.

“The calls for me not to attend demonstrate the intolerance of the Greens and the left – instead of arguing their case in the public arena they seek to shut down debate.

“Equally, I cannot support intolerance from other quarters.

“As I have been informed today that the event is now to be hosted by Catch the Fire, I have decided not to attend.

Andrews said he would still release the speech he intended to make at the event.

Christian evangelist, Rise Up Australia Party leader and Catch the Fire Ministries President Daniel Nalliah was recently unveiled as a “sponsor” of the event.

The Rise Up Australia said on its facebook page that Nalliah would still attend and accused Andrews of having “run home to mama”.

“What once would have transpired as a mundane meeting on traditional family values has now become a bete noire par excellence for the Pro-death and quasi-tolerance, reject-shop acceptance Brigade of unhappy-but-loud gay "keep it in the bedroom" types and extrovert abortionists,” the Party said.

“For the fourth time, ‘The regional conference of the World Congress of Families’ has had to be relocated because of the unhappy musings of the 21st Century mobile Munich beer Hall ‘tolerance’ putsch.

“Many high profile politicians have fled the nightmare scenario in their mind.”

Greens Senator Larissa Waters welcomed Andrew’s decision.

“This is good news for everyone who stood together to oppose the Abbott Government effectively endorsing the World Congress of Families’ harmful, discriminatory, prejudice-driven campaigns,” Waters said.

“Having the Federal Minister for Social Services open this conference would have sent a message that Australia accepts the Congress’ international campaigns to criminalise LGBTIQ people and to restrict access to abortion, which is absolutely not the case.

“Australians value equality, diversity and autonomy, as shown by the passionate public opposition to political representatives supporting the Congress and spreading its unfounded myths, including the completely discredited link between abortion and breast cancer.

“There’s still so much more work to be done to secure women’s and LGBTIQ rights and freedoms in Australia – we still have not legalised equal marriage and abortion is still a crime in some states.

“We can’t afford any backward steps, which is why it’s so important that the community has stood up against attempts by Abbott Government ministers to drag us back to the 1950s.”

Victorian Attorney-General Robert Clark and right-wing Victorian Liberal MP Bernie Finn have also since backed out of attending the event,” Waters said.