The Australian senate on Monday voted to censure far-right lawmaker Pauline Hanson for making “inflammatory and divisive” remarks about Muslims, sparking a dramatic outburst in the chamber.
Ms Hanson, leader of the anti-immigration One Nation party, came under fire last month after she questioned how anyone could claim that there were “good Muslims”.
On Monday, foreign minister Penny Wong moved the ruling Labour party’s motion to censure Ms Hanson for making remarks that sought to “vilify Muslim Australians” and affirmed parliament’s support for migrants.
The motion passed with backing from the minor, Greens party, and two Liberal senators – Paul Scarr and Andrew McLachlan – who crossed the floor to vote in favour of the condemnation. It passed by 36 votes to 17.
This is Ms Hanson’s second parliamentary censure in four months.
To claim “none of them are good”, referring to Muslims, was to say there were “no good Australians amongst them and it is to tell a child that no matter how hard they study, how kindly they treat others, how much they love this country, they will never belong,” Ms Wong said.
“Nearly a million Australians practise Islam. They are doctors, nurses, tradies, teachers, small business owners, firefighters, police officers and veterans. They are imams, community leaders and role models. They are parents and grandparents, brothers and sisters,” she added.
“They are the first to condemn the radical extremists who commit terrorist acts in the name of religion, and to claim that none of them are good is to say there are no good Australians.”
Ms Hanson was not present for the vote, but later made a speech rebuking the censure motion, calling it a “stunt”, before storming out of the chamber.
She said the government “can’t stand” the fact that the right-wing party was rising in opinion polls.
“The fact is, in your gut, that you can’t stand it. The fact is that One Nation is now on 27 per cent, 28 per cent. You can’t stand it,” Ms Hanson said. Opinion polls show Ms Hanson’s One Nation has overtaken the conservative opposition coalition, with 28 per cent of the primary vote, amid rising support for anti-immigration policies.
“It’s been misreported a lot by the media. You do not even know the full context of what was said,” she said, calling the government “gutless”.
In an interview with Sky News, Ms Hanson was asked about the possible return of women and children linked to Isis militants from Syrian refugee camps.
“They hate Westerners, and that’s what it’s all about. You say there are great Muslims out there. Well, I’m sorry, how can you tell me there are good Muslims?” she said in February, sparking outrage.
Ms Hanson later said she did not believe there were no “good” Muslims.
She also issued a qualified apology saying if she had “offended anyone out there that doesn’t believe in sharia law or multiple marriages or wants to bring Isis brides in, or people from Gaza that believe in a caliphate”.
“In general, that is what they want – a world caliphate. And I am not going to apologise … I will have my say now before it’s too late,” she said.
Ms Hanson was suspended from the senate last year for wearing a burqa in the chamber to draw attention to her campaign against face coverings in Australia and demand for a ban. She had staged a similar protest in 2017.
