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Pauline Hanson made headlines once again by entering the Senate donning a burqa, echoing a similar act she executed in 2017.
The leader of One Nation chose this dramatic gesture shortly after the government refused her request to present a bill aimed at banning burqas and full-face coverings in Australia.
Hanson has been a vocal advocate for this legislation for many years.
Her actions sparked widespread outrage in the Senate, drawing criticism from Labor’s Senate leader Penny Wong, Coalition Senate leader Anne Ruston, and various crossbench members.
As a result of the disruption, the Senate session was momentarily halted.
Hanson’s stunt was slammed by Australia’s Islamophobia envoy Aftab Malik, who told the Sydney Morning Herald the move could worsen harassment, threats of rape and violence against Muslim women in Australia.
“It is frustrating to see Australian Muslim women’s choice of clothing continually tied to national security concerns,” Malik said.
“Islamophobia is at record levels in Australia, described as ‘unprecedented’ by the Islamophobia Register Australia. Muslim women, in particular, face the brunt.
“Senator Pauline Hanson, eight years after her last call to ban the burqa, is again proposing it.
“This will deepen existing safety risks for Australian Muslim women who choose to wear the headscarf, the hijab, or the full face and body covering, the burqa.”
Greens Senator Mehreen Faruqi told the newspaper One Nation “has nothing to offer Australians apart from tired culture wars and hollow publicity stunts”.
“Nearly 10 years on from Hanson’s pathetic burqa stunt in the Senate, One Nation has flipped through its racist, Islamophobic policy generator and landed on the burqa ban once more,” Faruqi said.
“The idea that the government should be regulating what a woman can and cannot wear should never be up for debate. Parliament should outright reject this.”
Independent WA senator Fatima Payman said Hanson was “disrespecting a faith, disrespecting Muslim Australians”.
“This needs to be dealt with immediately before we proceed, it’s disgraceful,” Payman said in the Senate.
Wong said Hanson’s conduct was “not worthy” of the parliament and senators should not be “disrespectful of the Senate”.
Ruston called for respect for others and said, “This is not the way you should be addressing this chamber.”
Greens leader Larissa Waters called the burqa stunt an “insult”.
Nationals Senator Matt Canavan said Hanson’s stunt “weakens her case”, “cheapens our parliament” and would prompt most Australians to “look away in disgust”.
“Pauline Hanson needs some new material because, as you said, she has recycled this from eight years ago,” Canavan told the ABC.
“While this might attract the interest of a small fringe in our society, I just don’t think middle Australia like to see our parliament debased like this.
“I think this is disrespectful to Muslim Australians as well, I don’t support you ridiculing people who have certain multicultural dress standards, it is not appropriate.”
Hanson first wore a burqa in the Senate chamber in 2017.
“Today, the Senate stopped the introduction of my bill to ban the burqa and other full face coverings in public places,” Hanson said on social media this afternoon.
“Despite the ban in 24 countries across the world (including Islamic countries), the hypocrites in our parliament have rejected my bill.
“So if the parliament won’t ban it, I will display this oppressive, radical, non-religious head garb that risk our national security and the ill treatment of women on the floor of our parliament so that every Australian knows what’s at stake.
“If they don’t want me wearing it – ban the burqa.”