Report by Jack Sonnemann
Thanks to the overwhelming generosity of a handful of my supporters I was able to attend and have positive input into this very important conference held in Federal Parliament on 9 October.
There were some very impressive and important leaders representing such prominent groups as Collective Shout, Focus on the Family, Lifekeys International, Webshield, Family Voice, Dads4Kids and others. We formed a Roundtable and opened the meeting with a minute of silent prayer for Jill Meaghar. All in attendance are committed to helping curb such atrocities in Australia.
Australian filmmaker Jason Huxley has formed a new charity called Go for Greatness and is producing a documentary on the dangers of pornography to be released in 2014. While he was scouting for film locations in the US, I had him meet with some longtime friends who are very important players in this 'winnable war'. Dr Ted Baehr promised Jason professional help with his movie script - Ted's material is taught in film schools! Pat Trueman, Director of Morality in Media and organiser of PornHarms.com met with Jason in Washington DC and Jason was able to preach at a friend's church in Minneapolis. I will also be getting Jason together with the American Family Association which operates American Family Films.
When Jason first talked to me I felt as if he was certainly on the right track, and God opened some very important doors for him in the US.
Former successful porn producer in America, Donny Pauling, accompanied Jason back to Australia to tell us the "other side" of the porn business. Donny got saved through the ministry of www.xxxchurch.com. Donny shares about his Christianity and porn days in the media all across America and speaks at some important Christian conferences with friends of mine in US. He certainly gave the Australian MPs who heard him a story about porn that they seldom hear. Hopefully his testimony will carry some weight Down Under. I have even arranged for him to contact Robbie Swann, the head of the Eros Foundation in Canberra!
We produced a statement for the media and MPs that outlines some of what we would like to see happen in regards to porn, prostitution and sex trafficking. We worked on this for quite a while and I was able to have some very positive input with some current relevant numbers, facts, figures and ideas. I was able to argue forcefully for the need to stop porn from being so mainstream by enacting our Project Choice legislation nationwide. I explained that we need to overhaul the OFLC who refuse to restrict porn magazines like Picture, Penthouse and People. State and Federal legislation is needed to overrule the inadequate OFLC guidelines and no longer allow pornography — of any type — to be sold to, displayed to or accessed by children in the family marketplace.
I was appointed by this influential group to be our spokesman on legislative issues! When the statement is revised and finally adopted I will be forwarding it to all of you.
Webshield, a Christian Internet safety group brought up the fact that we should have an option to have filtered Internet content provided to us at the ISP level. Their Director Matthew Wigsell sat next to me at the Roundtable and he made a lot of sense. One of the provisions we adopted is that the government make this offer for all Internet users. Australians should be able to choose to have a clean feed which blocks X Rated or an unfiltered Internet feed which allows X Rated. Think of all the families in Australia who would be keen for this option!
Dr Allan Meyer talked about his Valiant Men project which has so far ministered to over 50,000 men internationally. Praise God. I have spoken at Allan's church on several occasions many years ago when he was pastor at Mt Evelyn Church of Christ and it was great to personally meet with him again. I send people his way who contact me for counselling. He told us all about "Junk Sex". If you spend all day filling up on sweets and junk food, eating and gorging at every opportunity, no matter what sort of delicious meal is served when you get home you will have no appetite for it. Great stuff and all men should try and attend his Valiant Men course!
I spoke a bit about how the Territories, according to the Australian Constitution, are governed by the Federal Government. This is why Kevin Andrews — God bless him — was able, as John Howard's Minister, to stop the Northern Territory from implementing euthanasia legislation. I brought up the fact that the Federal Government could at any time bring the Territories' laws regarding X Rated porn in line with the States' laws. No X Rated porn can be sold, hired or displayed in ANY state in Australia. They are only available in the Territories and shipped out via the post from order forms in the backs of all our porn magazines. X Rated has been banned in each and every state because it causes harm and it makes no sense that we allow this dangerous pornography to continue to decimate the Aboriginal communities as well as the entire nation.
Every time I mentioned that 1) the Australian Constitution says the Territories are governed by the States and 2) we that should demand that their laws concerning dangerous X Rated porn be brought into line with the States' laws, I was blasted by one particular group. They kept saying "that will never happen" or "that was different" or "the politics are different now" etc, etc, etc. I reminded all that Martin Luther said, "The fact that you may not succeed should never deter you from doing what is right." It is right to see the Territories laws on X Rated be brought into line with the States' laws. If we had listened to those who said it can't be done, we would never have banned X Rated from Pay TV in Australia - the only country in the Western World where this is so. If we had listened to those who said it can't be done, we would never have cancelled ALL Australian Dial-a-Porn servers. If we had listened to those who said it can't be done, we would never have bankrupted Australian Playboy, closed sex shops and brothels, cancelled brothel applications, and on and on and on.
I also briefly addressed the fact that ALL countries with legal prostitution have problems with sex trafficking! Those of us with a Biblical Christian Worldview cannot embrace the Swedish model concerning prostitution. The so-called Nordic Model only criminalises those who purchase the services of prostitutes. Imagine only arresting underage purchasers of cigarettes or alcohol and leaving those alone who facilitate the sale or actually do the selling!? "Swedish model, Schmedish model," I said. A Christian must look to the Scripture, not Sweden, for guidance. Some secular 'expert' has written a book praising the Swedish model and that seems to be the standard of those who say that it is reasonable. The Bibile has to be our standard and those of us with a Biblical Christian Worldview have a better guide than reason: its called God's Word.
If we only criminalise those who purchase the services of a prostitute and do not penalise the girls who sell illicit sex or the facilitators (pimps, brothels, madams, newspaper, magazine and TV ads etc) we are in fact OK-ing what they do and giving it society's stamp of approval. We, as Christians, cannot encourage the occasion to sin. That is why, as Christians, we cannot approve the homosexual 'civil union' register.
Unfortunately there are many well meaning but misinformed groups in Australia who are advocating the Swedish Model on prostitution. I spoke on this issue to this Roundtable, albeit briefly, but there are still those who claim the name of Christ for their organisation who do not advocate His values. A Biblical Christian must stand against ALL forms of prostitution. I gave everyone a copy of my Submission Against Houses of Prostitution in Tasmania (available on www.ausfamily.org) which outlines what happens when we OK our daughters working in brothels. It was providential that I had copies with me because I was able to use some of the footnoted data to sound a very forceful voice against the trafficking of women for sex in Australia.
At the dinner in a private House of Representatives dining room I was seated next to Senator Cory Bernardi and congratulated him for his sensible comment about bestiality. He told me he has been totally overwhelmed with positive responses — thousands of them! Leader for the Liberals in the Senate, Senator Eric Abetz was seated across form me and beside me was Senator Cataryna Blyck from Tasmania. Hon Kevin Andrews was seated just down from me and I was able to share a lot of what we are doing with the Australian Federation for the Family, why this Roundtable meeting was so important and why it is so essential for Australia's future that we help halt sex trafficking by fighting pornography. The MPs and Senators then heard from Donny Pauling who detailed to all just how dangerous and detrimental pornography is to women's rights, health and well being.
I just finished a United Christian Broadcasters radio interview for Vision Christian Radio where I outlined a bit about the conference. I will be detailing a lot more about this very important event but wanted to get this brief together for some of my special friends. God bless you and thanks so much for making it possible for me to attend this Summit. Your faithful stand with us in this 'winnable war' is deeply appreciated.