Kat Theophanous suspended as Cyprus speech sparks factional fight within Victorian Labor Party

Northcote MP Kat Theophanous has been suspended from a sub-faction of the Victorian Labor Party after sparking angry in-fighting over a speech backing Cyprus.

Northcote Labor MP Kat Theophanous has been suspended over her comments on Cyprus.

Factional infighting has erupted within the Victorian ALP over a parliamentary speech in support of Cyprus.

Northcote MP Kat Theophanous was suspended from the Cons faction — a sub faction of the party’s Right — this week after sparking anger with the speech.

There had been a push to expel her but an indefinite suspension was negotiated instead.

Ms Theophanous, a Cypriot Australian, made the pro-Cyprus speech earlier this month following a trip to the country.

“It has been 49 years since Türkiye invaded Cyprus, illegally seizing and violently occupying 36 per cent of the island, displacing hundreds of thousands of people,” she said.

“I am proudly Cypriot Australian, and this year, along with eight other Hellenic Australian parliamentarians, we passed a resolution at the World Hellenic Inter-Parliamentary Association’s general assembly.

“Together we condemned the illegal occupation of Northern Cyprus by Türkiye, which contravenes international law and UN resolutions, and we called for the right of return for Cypriot refugees to their ancestral homelands.”

Senior minister Natalie Suleyman was enraged by the comments.

Ms Theophanous said her mother’s village, Asha, remained under Turkish control.

“It is occupied by Turkish military, who rounded up the Greek civilians, executed them and dumped their bodies into mass graves,” she said.

“The international community has repeatedly called for the withdrawal of Turkish troops from Cyprus and a peaceful resolution – a chillingly similar scenario to Ukraine now. I stand in solidarity with them.”

The comments prompted fury among the ALP’s large Turkish base, and are understood to have infuriated senior minister Natalie Suleyman.

A motion to suspend Ms Theophanous was moved by minister Melissa Horne.

“The excuse given for suspending her was that she failed to consult with colleagues,” one source said.

“They wanted to demonstrate to the Turkish community that they had punished her.”

Another said: “It’s pretty extraordinary she’s been penalised internally for a position that is held by many countries.

“It’s akin to moving on a First Nations person who raises concerns about the history of their people.”

Factional heavyweights have downplayed the suspension.

But several sources said Ms Theophanous now faced an unceratin political future with no prospect of promotion unless she changed faction.

The suspension has also prompted fears of broader implications for the party including calling on the Victorian branch to formally recognise Greek and Armenian genocides.