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Australian court rejects Pauline Hanson's racial discrimination appeal

From Al Jazeera · () English

Translated from English, summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

News Sources not specified Outcome reported
  • An Australian court has unanimously rejected Pauline Hanson's appeal against a ruling that she racially discriminated against a Muslim senator.
  • Hanson had told Senator Mehreen Faruqi to "pack your bags and p*** off back to Pakistan" in a social media post.
  • The court found Hanson's comment unlawful and not protected by free speech defenses, upholding the original judgment that it contained an anti-Muslim and Islamophobic message.

Australia's Federal Court has upheld a ruling that found anti-migrant politician Pauline Hanson guilty of racial discrimination. The court unanimously dismissed Hanson's appeal against a 2024 judgment that she unlawfully discriminated against Greens Senator Mehreen Faruqi.

pack your bags and p*** off back to Pakistan

— Pauline HansonThe comment made by Pauline Hanson on social media directed at Senator Mehreen Faruqi.

Hanson, leader of the One Nation party, had posted on social media telling Faruqi to "pack your bags and p*** off back to Pakistan." This comment was made in response to Faruqi's remarks mourning Queen Elizabeth II, stating she could not mourn the leader of an empire built on stolen lives and wealth.

Today, justice has prevailed. Today’s win is for every single person out there who has been told to go back to where you came from.

— Mehreen FaruqiSenator Mehreen Faruqi's reaction to the court's decision outside the Sydney courthouse.

The three-judge panel affirmed that Hanson's comment was illegal and not protected by free speech. They agreed with the original ruling that characterized Hanson's post as anti-Muslim, Islamophobic, and a variation of the racist slogan "go back to where you came from." The court also confirmed the law's constitutionality and rejected Hanson's defense of fair comment on a matter of public interest.

Public discussion in Australia has become almost totally silenced by laws and rules which prevent ordinary people expressing their personal views in case some small part of our society takes some sort of offence or feels hurt or ‘distressed’. This has never been, nor ever should be, the Australian way.

— Pauline HansonPauline Hanson's statement on X following the court's decision, expressing her intent to appeal.

Senator Faruqi hailed the decision as a victory for those told to "go back to where you came from," stating, "Hate speech is not free speech." Hanson, however, indicated plans to appeal to Australia's High Court, arguing that current laws stifle public discussion and prevent ordinary people from expressing views without causing offense. She advocates for a monocultural Australian society, opposing multiculturalism.

We have 434 paragraphs of dismissing Pauline Hanson’s appeal, of confirming that indeed Pauline Hanson behaved in racism, Islamophobia, and hate.

— Mehreen FaruqiSenator Mehreen Faruqi's summary of the court's findings regarding Pauline Hanson's actions.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by Al Jazeera in English. Translated, summarized, and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

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