I will not be bullied over same-sex marriage, declares Labor MP Madeleine Ogilvie

SENIOR Labor figures have joined in a protest targeting the office of a state Labor MP over her stance on same-sex marriage.

Labor protesters at Madeleine Ogilvie’s office on Sunday.

SENIOR Labor figures have joined in a protest targeting the office of a state Labor MP over her stance on same-sex marriage.

Denison MP Madeleine Ogilvie said she felt bullied by the protest, and said it would only serve to turn off would-be Labor voters.

But those involved said they were simply expressing their disappointment that Ms Ogilvie had strayed from the agreed state Labor platform on same-sex marriage.

In the last week of State Parliament, Ms Ogilvie and a another Labor MP, Lyons member David Llewellyn, voted against a Greens’ motion giving in-principle support for same-sex marriage.

After a conscience debate, the motion passed the House of Assembly 15-9.

MORE: STATE MPS GIVE IN-PRINCIPLE SUPPORT TO SAME-SEX MARRIAGE

On Sunday a group of Labor members responded with a protest at Ms Ogilvie’s Glenorchy electorate office, drawing a chalk rainbow on the pavement and posing for pictures that were posted on the Rainbow Labor Tasmania Facebook page.

The group included senior union officials Tim Jacobson and Robbie Moore, Stuart Benson, a staffer to Senator Carol Brown, and Sharon Carnes, who was in competition with Ms Ogilvie at the last state election as an ALP candidate for Denison.

A post with the picture said: “Reminding one of the two Labor MPs who disappointingly broke with the binding Tas ALP Platform that they are on the wrong side of history and let down ALP members who have worked so hard for ­equality.”

Pictures of the protest were posted to social media sites.

Ms Ogilvie said the action fulfilled a prediction she made in her speech on the marriage equality motion, when she told Parliament it was getting more difficult for “moderate people of goodwill” to engage in public debate on such issues.

“The inevitable public shaming on social media for anyone brave enough to ­express divergent views has completely changed the way we engage in our democratic debates.”

A member of the Labor Right and a Catholic, Ms Ogilvie voted against the motion because it did not contain any proposed legislation.

On her Facebook page yesterday, Ms Ogilvie said: “I will not be bullied by a small group of people who say they want tolerance, but behave with anything but tolerance.”

She later told the Mercury: “This sort of behaviour just turns people away from Labor.”

Mr Jacobson said he was invited to take part in the protest by a group of rank and file ALP members who were “unbelievably upset” that Ms Ogilvie and Mr Llewellyn had ignored the binding state Labor ­position in support of marriage equality.