Anti-vax filmmaker Joan Shenton finally gets a visa

A British anti-vaccination filmmaker barred from entering Australia for screenings in August will be here next year.

A British anti-vaccination filmmaker who was unable to enter Australia for screenings of her documentary in August after being investigated as a controversial visitor is set to attend sessions of her film after she was granted permission to enter the country.

Visa application documents obtained by The Weekend Australian show that Joan Shenton’s visa application was approved in September, more than a month after she was forced to abandon plans to tour Australia for screenings of her film Sacrificial Virgins.

Her application for a visa had been delayed after it was sent for assessment by the Home Affairs Department to determine whether she had “engaged, or engages in, speech that is likely to result in some form of harm in the communit­y, such as views that could jeopardise public health”.

Before her scheduled visit earlier in the year, Health Minister Greg Hunt warned against what he said were the “false and reckless claims” in Shenton’s film.

Yesterday, Mr Hunt told The Weekend Australian that “the scienc­e is in and the medical ­experts’ advice is absolute: vaccinations save lives and protect lives and they are an essential part of a healthy society.”

A spokeswoman for Mr Hunt said: “Only this week Australia has eliminated rubella … Our nation­al immunisation program played an essential role in this.’’

The president of the Australian Medical Association, Tony Bartone, told The Weekend Australian “there is no place in our societ­y for people like this”. “We have a significant problem with misinformation spread by anti-vaxxers. We need a more robust solution with how we deal with this problem,” Dr Bartone said.

A Departme­nt of Home ­Affairs representative did not respon­d to requests for comment.

Shenton said she was pleased to have the visa: it meant she could attend screenings of her documentary next year.

She said her film “forensically probes the science behind the Gardasil HPV vaccination prog­rams, questioning their safety and whether they actually work”.

Despite her absence, the film screened in seven locations this year. It was also due to be shown last night at the Melbourne Underground Film Festival.