Pauline Hanson’s offensive burqa stunt proved her own theory wrong
SENATOR Pauline Hanson’s burqa stunt wasn’t just appalling and offensive — it also made her look foolish, writes Susie O’Brien. HAVE YOUR SAY
Susie O'Brien
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SENATOR Pauline Hanson wearing a burqa onto the floor of federal parliament was an appalling, offensive stunt that mocked the religious views of half a million Australians.
She did it to show how those wearing such religious garb are security risks and should be banned from parliament.
All it did was to make her look foolish, and demonstrate why such a ban is not needed.
As senate president Stephen Parry pointed out, anyone with their face obscured entering parliament is required to have their identity verified.
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This is what Senator Hanson herself — and anyone else dressed in a burqa — had to go through today.
So clearly, there’s no security risk and thus no need for a ban in order to protect national security. Wearing a burqa doesn’t mean you can’t be identified by authorities.
The stunt began with Senator Hanson proclaiming terrorism to be a threat and stating that a “majority” of Australians want the burqa to be banned.
Attorney-General George Brandis then spoke up, suggesting her actions offended the religious sensibilities of many Australians. He’s right.
He also noted that the vast majority of Muslims are law-abiding Australians. He’s right on that one too.
He said he would not be banning the burqa. Good on him.
It’s not often that Senator Brandis — better known as the man who argued for the right for people to be bigots — gets applause in the chamber from Labor and Greens.
But he deserved it today.
After shutting down debate by refusing to allow Labor’s Senator Penny Wong to speak, Senator Hanson went on to say the burqa was not a religious garment and should be banned in parliament.
“The people of Australia have the right to see the face of the person they elected to parliament,” she said.
I do not have any problem with asking women wearing face-obscuring burqas and niqabs in court or parliament or anywhere else to remove them for identification and safety purposes.
However, the issue should be handled sensitively and regard should be given to the religious preferences of the person involved.
Senator Hanson looks foolish in labouring this point at a time when there are many other more serious issues for her to be raising.
Focusing solely on women wearing burqas gives the false impression that there is a spate of women posing security risks because they have their face obscured in parliament.
It’s totally ridiculous, and it is good that her fellow senators were united in this view.
In a statement on her Facebook page, Senator Hanson said “believed that full face covering, such as the burqa, were oppressive, presented barriers to assimilation, disadvantaged women from finding employment, were causing issues inside our justice system, presented a clear security threat and had no place in modern Western society,” the statement read.
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As I have said before here, I am not a fan of the burqa. I think they are intimidating symbols of oppression, and are inappropriate for our climate and lifestyle.
However, I am not a Muslim woman, and support the right of any person to wear garments or symbols as part of the observance of their faith as long as doesn’t break Australian laws or customs.
All this stunt has done is make Hanson look irrelevant and out of touch.
In her first senate speech, Senator Hanson said the country was “in danger of being swamped by Muslims”.
She’s the one who belongs in a swamp.
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