Australia: Judge Rules Senator Violated Racial Discrimination Law

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Facts

  • An Australian judge has found Sen. Pauline Hanson guilty of violating Section 18C of the Racial Discrimination Act for a 2022 comment she made on X, then Twitter, regarding Pakistan-born Sen. Mehreen Faruqi.[1][2]
  • The incident came after the late Queen Elizabeth II's death, in response to which Faruqi wrote on X that she couldn't mourn the loss of 'the leader of a racist empire.' In response, Hanson used an expletive to tell Faruqi to go 'back to Pakistan.'[3][4]
  • This resulted in Faruqi, who is the deputy leader of the Australian Greens party, suing Hanson, who is a member of the right-wing One Nation party, in federal court.[5][1]
  • While Hanson's lawyers argued that her speech was protected political communication and that the queen's death was of public interest, Federal Court Justice Angus Stewart ruled that it was nativist, anti-Muslim, and a 'strong form of racism.'[6][7]
  • Stewart further ruled that Hanson, who must now delete the tweet within seven days and pay for Faruqi's legal costs, 'has a tendency to make negative, derogatory, discriminating or hateful statements.'[8]
  • Hanson called the verdict an 'inappropriately broad application' of the law in question, also stating that she would appeal the decision.[1]

Sources: [1]Associated Press, [2]Skynews, [3]Daily Sabah, [4]The Express Tribune, [5]Middleeastmonitor, [6]Irish Examiner, [7]Daily Mail and [8]Abc.

Narratives

  • Left narrative, as provided by SBS News. Hanson's tweet wasn't covered by official speech rights because it had nothing to do with what Faruqi wrote about the late Queen and everything to do with her background. If Hanson had mentioned reparations, colonialism, treaties with First Nations, or the republic, then her argument of protected political speech may have had more merit. This ruling sets a positive precedent: hate speech is not free speech.
  • Right narrative, as provided by Daily Caller and The Nightly. While Hanson's tweet could certainly be seen as insulting, the fact that she's the only one facing punishment is hypocritical at best. Australians should be allowed to offend one another no matter the subject, and even if they're banned from doing so, it will only fuel further racial discord. Choosing which racial groups get to offend one another is deeply concerning.