Editors --- "Sit down Girlie' The Columns that has bowls" [2001] AltLawJl 11; (2001) 26(1) Alternative Law Journal 42

• 'SIT DOWN GIRLIE'
• The Column that has Bowls
• Emily bowls them over
• Court gives women a bum rap
• Mamma Mia!
• Back to the Italian Supreme Court
• You dirty Girlie!
• Closer to home

'SIT DOWN GIRLIE'
The Column that has Bowls

Emily bowls them over

Congratulations to Emily South on her win at the Antidiscrimination List of the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal. Girlie fans will recall that Emily challenged the Royal Victorian Bowls Association which had banned her from playing lawn bowls in the male only pennant. It takes courage to stand up in court and fight discrimination and Emily joins the other brave women willing to take a stand to bring about change. She has been the subject of a few vitriolic responses in the tab­ loid media but also has many supporters. The issues raised by this case are the same as for other sports like golf ­ men hog the green on Saturdays and women have been made to wait in line. Arguments that male bowlers are stronger and more aggressive than women were tossed out by the Tribunal.

Court gives women a bum rap

According to Italy's Supreme Court patting another person's bottom is not a crime so long as the pat is not prolonged or of 'sexual intent'. The Court acquit­ ted a health official from a town near Venice who was initially convicted and sentenced to 18 months jail. He had 'failed to contain himself and extended his hand to the bottom of a female em­ ployee'. The official was also ordered to pay damages after he was found to have threatened his victim and said he would ruin her career if she proceeded with her complaint against him. Bruce Johnston reporting from Rome (Tele­ graph AP 27/10/2001) writes: 'The decision to overturn the lower court's judgement confirmed the reputation for controversial decisions by Italy's male dominated Supreme Court in sex cases. It said there was nothing wrong with "a one-off, unexpected pat on the bottom" provided that it was not lustful.'

Bruce Johnston quotes Tinto Brass, a Venetian soft-porn film director as hailing the decision by saying that while he did not personally know what it was like to receive a pat on the bot­ tom, '... giving one is certainly a pleasurable experience'. Simona Ventura, actress and television presenter disagreed saying the decision is shameful and women should be 'a little less feminine and keep a hammer with them to use to hit offensive brutes on the head'. She continued, 'personally anyone who did that to me could expect to be hit in a place where it hurts'.

Mamma Mia!

While Girlie would never advocate the kind of violence suggested above, Ms Ventura does remind me of my very own beloved mother who dealt with a randy itinerant shearer back in about 1920 in a similar fashion. It appears the shearer made the following observation to Grandpa, 'Geez, the sheilas around here are a bit rough'. Grandpa sought clarification and was told, 'I tried to kiss a sheila down the back of Pileau Street and she hit me on the head with a lump of wood'. Grandpa smiled and said, 'Yes and you'll get more of the same if you try that on with my daughter again'.

Back to the Italian Supreme Court

Seven years ago the Court ruled that a young woman wearing jeans could not have been raped because she would have had to help the alleged rapist to take the jeans off and that automatically implied consent. The ruling was 'scrapped' as a result of public outcry that included women MPs wearing jeans to work.

You dirty Girlie!

On 13/2/2001 the Age republished a Guardian story by Rory Carroll concerning a divorce case in which Italy's Supreme Court ruled that a wife's lack of interest in the cleaning and order of the matrimonial home was sufficient grounds for divorce. The Court found Maria Cristina V, pensioner, solely responsible for the break-up of her 50-year marriage by failing to dust and tidy saying, 'A messy home [is] a messy life and a violation of the duties of co­ habitation'. Maria Cristina was accused of betraying her husband and four adult children by disdaining housework. 'The lack of interest of the wife who neglected the cleaning and order of the house confirmed total lack of interest for the rules of civil life', according to the judges. No mention was made of the husband's domestic role and he was awarded sole possession of the house and a cut in maintenance payments.

Last year the same Court ruled that adultery could take place in the mind and that even a platonic relationship with a third party could betray a spouse.

Long term Girlie readers will recall inappropriate sexist judicial attitudes spawned the birth of the 'Sit Down Girlie' column back in 1991. At that time prominent legal aid lawyer Renata Alexander had been yelled at by a judicial official of the Family Court of Australia, to wit, 'Sit down girlie!' and the column was named in honour of Renata and all women who had suffered from sexist attitudes in our courts. Girlie is very pleased to note that there have been many more women judges appointed since that time, and the second edition of Thomas, J.B., Judicial Ethics in Australia (LBC Services, 1997, p.69) recounts Renata's story and the consequent birth of the 'Sit down Girlie' column.

Closer to home

Just as Girlie relents on the issue of the judiciary and sexism guess what? On 23 February2001 a County Court judge in Melbourne told a young woman who had been sexually abused by her uncle to forget about it and stop looking for someone to punish (Herald Sun 24/2/2001). Judge Kent's comments were made in a case in which the uncle pleaded guilty to sexual offences com­ mitted over four years against his niece who was aged 12 to 17 years. The victim told the Herald Sun that Judge Kent made her feel 'like he was trying to blame me'. She said she understood why victims were reluctant to come forward. The judge asked the prosecutor to re-consider asking for a jail sentence and when the prosecutor declined this invitation the uncle was sentenced to two years jail with a nine month non-parole period. The judge told the offending uncle, 'Society has nothing to fear from you in the future'. The victim's mother disagreed and said the uncle had ruined her whole family and subjected her daughter to years of torture.

Lee Girlie

Lee is a feminist lawyer.