Cameron Stewart; 25/9/08
The nation’s most exclusive men’s clubs are breaking a century of tradition by denying honorary membership to the highest office-holders in the land because they are women. The new Governor-General, Quentin Bryce, NSW Governor Marie Bashir, Queensland Governor Penelope Wensley and the Chief Justice of the Victorian Supreme Court, Marilyn Warren, are among those being shunned by men’s clubs that have traditionally offered honorary membership to these office-holders, believing they would always be men. The Athenaeum Club in Melbourne, which is being rocked by a divisive debate over female membership, has failed to invite either Ms Bryce or the two female state governors to be honorary members. This is despite the club’s constitution, which allows honorary membership for “people in positions of distinction or attainment, including the governor-general of Australia and the governors of each Australian state”. Similarly, the country’s oldest and largest men’s club, the Australian Club in Sydney, has failed to offer honorary membership to Professor Bashir, despite past governors being granted membership of the club.
See: http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,25197,24399164-5013404,00.html
