Thank you, Madam Deputy Speaker.
Hon members, colleagues and friends, today we present for the consideration of this House the Civil Union Bill of 2006 after an elaborate process of public consultation and debate in this country.
The process of debate on this Bill has been rigorous. The extensive media coverage on the debate on the Bill has resulted in the debate continuing in our homes, workplaces and communities throughout our country. One thing that came out of the debate has been an indication that people in all sections of our society feel very strongly about the issues being dealt with in this Bill.
This dialogue is by no means over, and we continue to engage each other on these matters in a constructive way in order to lead South Africans towards the kind of society that we all fought for, as embodied in our Constitution.
For this reason, we are expecting robust debate even during this Second Reading debate here in the House. I must also indicate that we have already noted the changes made by the Portfolio Committee on Home Affairs to the original Bill. Understanding the difficulties they were faced with, we have decided to support those changes.
The challenge that we shall continue to face has to do with the fact that when we attained our democracy, we sought to distinguish ourselves from an unjust painful past by declaring that:
Never again shall it be that any South African will be discriminated against on the basis of colour, creed, culture and sex.
This House, in passing the Constitution in 1996, recognised the fact that our nation's commitment to this noble principle of equality should be the cornerstone of the society we want to build. In breaking with our past, therefore, we need to fight and resist all forms of discrimination and prejudice, including homophobia.