In recent years, Women Speak Tasmania (WST) has been at the centre of a disturbing pattern of censorship, no-platforming, and institutional bias against women raising concerns about gender ideology. At the heart of these events lies the role of former Tasmanian Anti-Discrimination Commissioner Robin Banks. What follows is a timeline of events, a summary of outcomes, and a critical analysis of what this means for women’s rights and freedom of speech in Tasmania.
Timeline of Events
30 November 2018 – Robin Banks emailed the Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom (WILPF) in an attempt to prevent WST from speaking at a Human Rights Week event. In the email, Banks claimed that WST “denied the very humanity and existence” of gender-diverse people and warned WILPF their reputation would be damaged if WST were given a platform.
5 December 2018 – On Attack on Freedom of Speech news report, we describe this as a direct attempt to silence women and restrict their participation in democratic debate.
6 December 2018 – WST released Robin Banks Attempts to No-Platform Women Speak Tasmania, making public the contents of Banks’ email and exposing the extent of behind-the-scenes pressure.
7 December 2018 – WILPF cancelled the scheduled Human Rights Week forum. WST condemned the cancellation as an example of bullying, blacklisting, and silencing, symptomatic of the wider intimidation faced by women who question gender identity ideology.
25 January 2019 – WST announced that they had lodged a formal complaint with Equal Opportunity Tasmania and the Human Rights Commission regarding Robin Banks’ conduct. Commissioner Sarah Bolt recused her office due to potential bias and referred the matter to the Tasmanian Ombudsman. WST expressed concern about delays and the lack of transparency in the process.
Outcomes and Lack of Resolution
To date, no public outcome from the Ombudsman has been reported. Searches of published investigation reports reveal no findings relating to Robin Banks or this matter. WST has repeatedly noted that they have not been contacted with any update. The absence of resolution has left serious questions about accountability in cases involving high-profile officials.
This was not the first time concerns had been raised. In 2016, feminist activist Tessa Anne accused Robin Banks of bullying and sex discrimination during discussions about transgender law reform. Complaints were made to the Attorney-General and Integrity Commission, but no public findings followed. Reports from that period also record Banks dismissing concerns about violence against women, further inflaming tensions with women’s advocacy groups.
Analysis and Implications
These events demonstrate a troubling clash between free speech and gender identity politics. For WST, the right of women to participate in open debate about laws and policies affecting them was undermined by the very office tasked with protecting anti-discrimination principles.
By labelling women’s speech as hateful, Robin Banks positioned legitimate concerns about safeguarding, women’s rights, and sex-based protections as beyond the bounds of public debate. The result was the cancellation of a human rights forum, silencing women’s voices on one of the most important issues of our time.
The referral of complaints to the Ombudsman was an opportunity for transparency and accountability. Yet without a published outcome, women are left without redress and Tasmanians without confidence that their institutions uphold fairness when officials themselves are accused of misconduct.
The pattern is clear: women’s groups raising sex-based concerns have been excluded from debate, denied platforms, and dismissed as illegitimate stakeholders. This undermines democratic participation, violates Australia’s obligations under CEDAW, and erodes trust in anti-discrimination processes.
Conclusion
The unresolved complaints against Robin Banks highlight a systemic problem. Women in Tasmania, and across Australia, are being silenced when they raise legitimate concerns about laws and policies that impact their rights, privacy, and safety. When institutions fail to act, it signals that women’s voices can be suppressed without consequence.
Until these issues are addressed with transparency, accountability, and genuine inclusion of women as stakeholders, confidence in anti-discrimination processes will remain deeply compromised.