Caleb Bond: This is the sort of abuse that, when perpetrated against women of the left,  is decried as misogyny

The same people who most probably decried Julia Gillard’s treatment are the same ones hurling venom at Nicolle Flint, writes Caleb Bond.

Nicolle Flint’s sad departure from politics is the greatest example of the hypocrisy endemic to many on the left.

Ms Flint has had to deal with a barrage of abuse from political opponents – much of it based on her gender.

This is the sort of abuse that, when perpetrated against women of the left, is decried as misogyny and sexism.

The same people who would be leading the charge against that sort of abuse, and most probably did when Labor’s Julia Gillard was prime minister (the last to leave that office with grace), are the ones who have hurled it at Ms Flint.

Her offices and posters have been scrawled with messages calling her a slut, a skank, saying she would “blow and go” and that she was a $60-an-hour prostitute.

Words with meanings that do not come within a mile of describing Ms Flint.

But whoever wrote those messages obviously intended them to carry shame – to put shame upon a woman for being a woman. Whoever that was, they presumably didn’t lean to the right.

This kind of thing was implicitly encouraged by left- wing activism outfit GetUp, the unions and the Labor Party.

Federal Liberal MP Nicolle Flint. Picture: Keryn Stevens

Of course, they never told people to pepper Ms Flint with misogyny and disgusting slurs. But they orchestrated a targeted and vicious campaign against her – essentially dropping the bomb and walking out to let the underlings do what they wanted.

The objective was to clinch the marginal seat of Boothby for the ALP, and they were going to do that by hook or by crook. Ms Flint was stalked by a creepy man by the name of David Walsh – now dead – who started out showing up to community meetings and lurking around with a camera.

He didn’t come to participate or ask questions. He just came to watch, like some kind of omnipresent reminder that she was being monitored.

He showed up again and again despite Ms Flint telling him it made her feel unsafe and uncomfortable.

It culminated in Walsh appearing – with a crew of GetUp protesters – to a private event she was holding with some community volunteers.

This man went around taking photos through the windows, just to make sure he drove home the point that he was keeping an eye on her.

These photos would be posted on social media, often accompanied by derogatory and sexist captions.

He was intimidating her. And it worked. Ms Flint felt genuinely unsafe. She started taking a male colleague with her to all events. She stopped driving around in her campaign vehicle because she was worried it would make her a target.

Mr Walsh was issued with a stalking caution by police. Odious thugs like has-been broadcaster Mike Carlton pondered on Twitter why a fellow panellist on Q&A had not strangled her.

You and I both know what would happen if I, or any other prominent conservative man, suggested on live television that a female Labor MP should be strangled.

GetUp and their ilk have never called out the appalling behaviour towards Ms Flint that they helped encourage.

Labor Senator Penny Wong has previously rejected Ms Flint’s claims the Boothby campaign was sexist. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Gary Ramage

If they won’t call it out, are they perhaps OK with it? Is it acceptable to abuse a woman in the most horrific and sexist ways when her politics don’t align with the left?

Labor heavyweight Penny Wong has previously denied that Ms Flint was the target of a sexist campaign. When contacted by the Sunday Mail for comment on Ms Flint’s decision to leave politics, Ms Wong declined.

Former US secretary of state Madeline Albright once said there was special place in hell for women who don’t help other women.

Again, is that only for a certain type of woman? Add to all of this the torrid past fortnight of Australian politics and it’s no wonder Ms Flint has thrown in the towel. You couldn’t blame any woman, really.

Ms Flint last year addressed a parliamentary committee about what she’d dealt with.

“The abuse, aggression, stalking, misogynistic and bullying behaviour and vandalism,” she said. “I want to ensure that no future candidates, or MP, whether they are male or female … has to go through what I went through.”

She tried – but it was too much. And many of the people who would otherwise be outraged by this kind of thing are probably celebrating.