Response from Department of Planning, Transport and Infrastructure, South Australia
In South Australia, a personalized or custom plate is considered unsuitable if it contains inflammatory or defamatory references in any language which could be considered by a reasonable person to be inappropriate for public display. This includes words that refer to racial groups, have a sexual reference, a religious profanity, offensive text speaks or refer to gang names.
Based on the nature of the complaints received in this case, and in making the decision to revoke the plates, DPTI consulted with the Jewish Community Council of South Australia and Persian Cultural Association of South Australia, and contacted the Indian Australian Association of South Australia to seek comment on their interpretation of the word to better understand the cultural significance surrounding its meaning. Following this consultation, the Registrar of Motor Vehicles made the determination to revoke the plates and is happy to explore the following identified options with the current number plate owners:
- A corporate plate with ‘Aryan’ displayed in Sanskrit text as a background on an alphanumeric plate, free of charge
- An alternate personalised plate displaying combinations such as ‘Noble’ or ‘Arya’ at no cost
- A full refund of the $180 purchase plate, or option to apply for another personalised plate at no cost
Any person who is aggrieved by a decision made by the Registrar of Motor Vehicles to refuse the issue of a number plate combination may also apply at a Service SA customer service centre for a review of that decision under Section 98Z of the Motor Vehicles Act 1959.
