Refugee activist appeals after Peter Dutton wins defamation lawsuit over ‘rape apologist’ tweet

Refugee activist Shane Bazzi has launched an appeal after losing a defamation lawsuit against Federal Minister Peter Dutton over a deleted Tweet.

Refugee activist Shane Bazzi has formally launched an appeal against a court ruling that he defamed Liberal politician Peter Dutton when he called him “a rape apologist” on Twitter.

Mr Dutton, now Defence Minister, was awarded $35,000 by a Federal Court judge last month after he sued Mr Bazzi over the deleted tweet.

Mr Bazzi had tweeted “Peter Dutton is a rape apologist” and linked to a news article.

Mr Dutton, who was then-Home Affairs Minister, was quoted in the article as saying some women in offshore detention were “trying it on” by claiming they‘d been raped in Nauru to get an abortion in Australia.

Federal Court judge Richard White concluded Mr Bazzi‘s tweet conveyed that Mr Dutton excuses rape and found in the politician’s favour.

The Defence Minister sued activist Shane Bazzi for defamation over the since-deleted tweet, which was posted on February 25 and stated: “Peter Dutton is a rape apologist”.

The activist, through his lawyers O’Brien criminal and civil solicitors, announced on Monday he had launched an appeal.

“Mr. Bazzi will be arguing that the judge erred in finding that Mr. Bazzi‘s tweet carried the meaning found by the judge, namely that Mr. Dutton ’excuses rape’,” a statement reads.

The lawyers for Mr Bazzi say Mr Dutton only succeeded on part of his claim against the activist.

The Federal Court, despite finding in Mr Dutton’s favour, did not award him aggravated damages because the tweet did not impact Mr Dutton “in his day-to-day political or ministerial activities, or in his relationships with other people”.

The judge concluded Mr Bazzi’s lawyers had not explained how context, raised by Mr Bazzi, had informed readers of his “rape apologist” tweet.

The appeal will be heard in 2022.