Q&A: British monarchy ‘sick at its core’; Israel clash with Hamas stirs debate

The royal family has been enriched by corruption, racism and slavery, an academic has told a fiery edition of ABC show.

Author and academic Randa Abdel-Fattah on the ABC’s Q&A program.

The British monarchy is “sick at its core” and has been “enriched by corruption, imperialism, racism and slavery”, an Australian academic has claimed, urging watchers of Saturday’s royal wedding to view the institution with a critical eye.

Randa Abdel-Fattah, a successful author, Research Fellow at Macquarie University and devout Muslim, told the ABC’s Q&A program she did not believe the wedding between Prince Harry and American actor Meghan Markle — who became the Duke and Duchess of Sussex — would influence the views of Australians towards the monarchy.

“The monarchy represents an institution of imperialism and racism and it has been enriched by corruption, imperialism, racism, and slavery, and for me it’s not just suddenly we have a biracial bride and that diversity politics erases the history of that institution,” she said.

“We shouldn’t lose our critical eye when we look at these things and not be seduced by the pomp and ceremony … The fact that homeless people were taken away from the streets. The fact the Grenfell fire people have not been compensated. These are the real issues. Not what Meghan was wearing and whether or not she’s now reformed an institution that is sick at its core.”

In a fiery program in Melbourne that debated violence in Israel, Australian immigration, and quotas for women in politics and business, the wedding was described as “genius PR” for the royal family.

“They’re good at this PR stuff. It’s a success. It’s a grey old world. (British PM Theresa) May is miserable. (Opposition Leader Jeremy) Corbyn is frightening. Harry and Meghan, God bless them,” Greg Sheridan, Foreign Affairs Editor at The Australian, said.

“I’m sure Harry loves Meghan and Meghan loves Harry but this was a strategic marriage on a par with William of Orange and of England.”

Victorian Liberal Senator Jane Hume said she had been a lifelong monarchist.

“I was really proud and had a little tear in my eye, along with most Australians,” she said. Labor MP Julie Collins replied that as a republican, she did not believe the marriage would impact the views of Australians towards the royals.

“I believe Australia is a free and independent country and we should have our own head of state. I’ve always believed that,” she said. “The royal wedding hasn’t changed my mind and I don’t think it will change many other minds.”

Is rising monarchism just celebrity escapism? Greg Sheridan & @RandaAFattah respond #QandA pic.twitter.com/2KD20WpnOz

— ABC Q&A (@QandA) May 21, 2018

VIOLENCE IN GAZA

Australia voted against a UN Human Rights Council inquiry into violence along the Gaza border because it felt the outcome “was already being prejudged”, according to senator Hume.

Sixty people were killed by Israeli gunfire when violence erupted along the border fence, marking the 70th anniversary of the Nakba — the day Palestinians fled or were removed from their homes.

“The UN Human Rights Council had already prejudged the outcome and you could tell that from its language. It didn’t include Hamas in any of the terms of reference of that inquiry. It only included Israel,” the Liberal senator told the ABC program.

“It included not just Gaza but also Jerusalem and the West Bank, which weren’t necessarily involved in this particular incident. It didn’t cite this particular incident at all. It had an unlimited time period over which it wanted to look at Israeli behaviour.

“We felt it was inappropriate the way it had been, the way it had been phrased. Australia has supported these independent inquiries in the past. It supported the use of chemical weapons in Syria, an inquiry into that. It was the fact that we felt they already had come out with an outcome.”

Philosopher Peter Singer said there were “extremists on both sides”.

“The Israeli government has gone to extremes and has not shown signs of really being interested in negotiating peace or stopping settlements,” he said. “On the other hand you have to say as far as Hamas is concerned particularly. They are a terrorist organisation. They are firing rockets into Israel. They are openly trying to kill Israelis where they can … It’s very hard to see a way out.”

Ms Abdel-Fattah, meanwhile, said there is “no mystery” to what happened when the two sides clashed.

“Where do I start?” she said. “It’s a disgrace that Australia voted against something that doesn’t even need an investigation. It’s no mystery. It’s no mystery what happened. There’s live testimony. There’s video evidence. There’s photographic evidence. We don’t need another investigation. What will happen after that? Nothing.”

Will the Australian govt ever stop using the line ‘Israel has the right to defend itself’? Greg Sheridan & @RandaAFattah respond #QandA pic.twitter.com/BsxRHPgOdz

— ABC Q&A (@QandA) May 21, 2018

WOMEN

Senator Hume said women are “absolutely” under-represented in the Liberal Party but disagreed with several of the other panellists that quotas are the means to achieve that goal.

“Does the Liberal Party need more women? Absolutely, women are under-represented significantly,” she said. “This round of preselections and the round of preselection challenges, is it because they’re women? No. Not at all. This is not a gender issue.”

Ms Collins said it is a “structural problem” within politics and the Liberal Party that Labor solved decades ago.

“How do you overcome the structural problem?” she asked. “You have to intervene and use an intervention.”

Next week, Liberal senator for NSW Jim Molan, Labor MP Ged Kearney and CEO and co-founder of Airtasker Tim Fung.

.@PeterSinger doesn't think anyone believes pre-selection is based on merit. @SenatorHume says work harder, get better. #QandA pic.twitter.com/p6qSHKssSQ

— ABC Q&A (@QandA) May 21, 2018