One Nation leader Pauline Hanson defended telling a senator she should “go back to Pakistan” after a federal court found she had racially vilified the Greens member.
Senator Hanson’s legal team has appealed the verdict, saying her sledgehammer against Mehreen Faruqi was not racist as she had previously told another senator to “go back” to New Zealand.
Her team also claimed that Senator Hanson’s comment could not be considered a racial slur because she did not mention Senator Mehreen’s skin color.
The news comes after Senator Hanson came under a furious attack in the Senate on Wednesday, with a parliamentary colleague branding her a ‘disgrace to the human race’.
Senator Fatima Payman, who left Labor earlier this year to form her own party, unleashed the One Nation leader, accusing her of racism and claiming she was sowing hatred and division in a fiery exchange that made headlines across the country .
But what caused this outburst?
Senator Hanson had filed a document questioning whether Senator Payman’s Afghan citizenship disqualified her from serving in Parliament.
Section 44c of the Australian Constitution prevents anyone who holds citizenship of another country from sitting in parliament.
Senator Pauline Hanson (pictured) had filed a document questioning whether Senator Payman’s Afghan citizenship disqualified her from serving in Parliament
Senator Fatima Payman (pictured), who left Labor earlier this year to form her own party, unleashed the One Nation leader, accusing her of racism and claiming she was spreading hatred and division in a fiery exchange that made headlines in the UK. reached the whole country.
Senator Payman was born in Kabul, the capital of Afghanistan, but was granted Australian citizenship in 2005.
However, this did not automatically lead to the revocation of her Afghan citizenship, raising questions about her suitability to serve in the Senate.
Senator Payman claims she contacted the Afghan embassy in Australia in October 2021 to renounce her Afghan citizenship, but they were unable to do so because they had no relationship with the new Taliban government.
Nevertheless, Senator Payman received legal advice from the Labor Party that she had taken ‘all reasonable steps’ to revoke her foreign citizenship and was eligible to do so.
On Wednesday, Senator Payman lashed out at the One Nation leader in Parliament, suggesting she would ‘go to Afghanistan and talk to the Taliban about this’.
“All Senator Hanson has done here is sow hatred and division,” Senator Payman fumed.
“I’m very honored to live rent-free in Senator Hanson’s eyes, but I think you have better things to do than worry about Section 44.”
Senator Hanson hit back, insisting that Senator Payman’s ‘suitability to serve in the Australian Senate remains under a cloud’.
She said the strict standards that applied to elected representatives during the 2017 voting eligibility crisis, which saw 15 politicians lose their seats because they held dual citizenship, had not been applied to Payman.
“If she had been elected in 2016 instead of 2022, she would have been sent to the Supreme Court like everyone else,” said Senator Hanson.
“If she had been elected Conservative in 2022, I suspect she would have been referred straight away.”
The One Nation leader criticized the Greens for trying to block her submission of documents outlining her concerns about Senator Payman’s suitability.
‘The Greens have never respected our Constitution. Marxists always despise the institutions of democracy,” she said.
“I’m sure they would like to dismantle the Constitution and replace it with some version of the communist manifesto.”
Senator Hanson called on Senator Payman to provide “much more evidence” of her efforts to revoke her Afghan citizenship, arguing that failure to do so would set a “dangerous precedent.”
“There is a very good reason why the architects of our Constitution require our elected representatives to have undivided loyalty,” said Senator Hanson.
“It is also the expectation of the Australian people that no foreign national or dual national should hold the seat of our democracy.”
Her comments came after Senator Payman accused her of racism by listing previous comments made by Senator Hanson, including her first speech in which she said Australia was “in danger of being overrun by Asians” and that “Aboriginalism would no longer exist” if her party was in power.
“If that’s not racist, what is?” Senator Payman shouted as she pounded her fist on the Senate table.
Independent Ralph Babet could be seen over Senator Payman’s shoulder as he tried to contain his shock over the outburst.
“Oh, it’s not racist?” Senator Payman added sarcastically.
“Someone get the dictionary because Senator Hanson doesn’t know the definition of racism.
“The fact that a few weeks ago you told Senator Faruqi to ‘go back to Pakistan’; Not only are you vindictive, mean, nasty, you bring shame to the human race. No dignity whatsoever as a senator in this prestigious place.”
Lidia Thorpe could be heard repeatedly shouting: ‘You are a convicted racist!’.
Senator Pauline Hanson appeals ruling she racially defamed Greens senator Mehreen Faruqi (pictured)
Senator Hanson, sitting a short distance from Senator Payman, calmly asked the Senate President to withdraw the racism charge.
After being reminded by the President that accusing someone of being a racist was a violation of the general orders, Senator Payman reluctantly retracted her comments.
‘I’m withdrawing for the benefit of this House, but you know what, Senator Hanson? How can you handle yourself, Senator Hanson, with so much violent hatred?” she asked.
Senator Hanson justified her actions in a lengthy post Tuesday evening.
“Senator Payman is likely using her position in the Senate to automatically register a political party, one that could influence the outcome of the next federal election,” the One Nation leader wrote.
“And yet Senator Payman may not be eligible to serve in the Senate.
“The Prime Minister’s failure to take appropriate action risks undermining the integrity of our elections and the Australian people’s confidence in the integrity of our parliament.”
As for her legal battle with Senator Faruqi, Senator Hanson is using nearly $700,000 donated by supporters to help fund her impressive legal team.
She will be represented by leading lawyer Sue Chrysathanou and her lawyer Anthony Jeffries, who is also representing Lisa Wilkinson in the defamation trial against Bruce Lehrmann.
Judge Angus Stewart found on November 1 that Senator Hanson’s post on
However, Senator Hanson’s attack was not racist as “the attack was only directed at Senator Faruqi, there is no explicit or implicit reference to color.”
“It was not advocated or presented to Senator Hanson that the Hanson tweet targeted immigrants (generally) and ‘people of color,'” according to the defense documents obtained by news.com.au declared.
Pictured: Senator Hanson walking in front of Independent Senator Lidia Thorpe, who repeatedly shouted: ‘You are a convicted racist!’ during Senator Payman’s fiery beam
Senator Hanson’s team also pushed back against accusations that the post was anti-Muslim.
“The primary judge incorrectly found that the Hanson tweet targets Muslims and conveys an anti-Muslim message, in circumstances where there is no implicit or explicit reference to Islam in the Hanson tweet,” the report said.
‘…The primary judge wrongly held that the Hanson tweet was in all the circumstances reasonably likely to offend, offend, humiliate and intimidate groups of people by referring to the groups of ‘people of color who are migrants to Australia or are Australians of origin ‘. relatively recent migrant heritage” and “Muslims who are people of color in Australia”.
“None of these groups were advocated by Senator Faruqi, and Senator Hanson was not notified that these groups would be the subject of adverse findings against her until after the judgment was published.”
Senator Payman broke ranks with Labor in May this year, accusing her former party of failing to respond adequately to Israel’s alleged war crimes in the Gaza Strip.
She then founded her own party in October, called Australia’s Voice.