Deves sends family away following death threats over anti-trans comments

Controversial Liberal candidate Katherine Deves has broken her media silence, speaking from a secret location to say she has been “chastened” by the backlash to her anti-trans comments.

Liberal candidate Katherine Deves has broken her media silence, saying she has received death threats for her past transphobic comments. Picture: Nikki Short

Liberal candidate Katherine Deves has sent her family away from Sydney after receiving death threats over controversial comments she has made about transgender athletes.

Ms Deves has told SBS News she has had to involve the police and AFP to protect her and her family.

“My safety has been threatened,” she said. “My family are away out of Sydney because I don’t want them to witness what I’m going through, nor do I want their safety put at risk.”

It is the first time the candidate for Warringah has broken her silence since her “captain’s pick” selection sparked a fierce public and party backlash to past transphobic social media posts in which she called transgender children “surgically mutilated” and “sterile”.

Ms Deves has refused repeated requests for interviews from The Australian and other media outlets, even refusing to enter a “politics in the pub” event in Sydney’s north on Friday night until all reporters were evicted.

Ms Deves said she had been “chastened” by the backlash, and promised to conduct herself “in a dignified and respectful fashion” going forward.

“I recognise that trying to prosecute arguments about complex, nuanced and difficult subjects should not take place on a platform that propagates offence and division and hurt,” she said.

“As a mother and a woman, I recognised that the way I prosecuted those arguments was not conducive to proper, reasonable debate.”

Ms Deves rejected the suggestion she was “being played” to help the Liberal Party gain seats in conservative regional and rural areas when she had little chance of winning Warringah.

“I put my hand up to represent the people of Warringah, and I would not have done that if I did not sincerely believe that I had a chance. And if there are other mechanisms at play, I’m not aware of them.”

Asked if she had a message for young and vulnerable trans kids who might have heard her comments, Ms Deves said the issue was women’s rights.

“We have a collision of rights, and thus far the voices of women and girls have not been heard,” she continued.

However, she said the outrage against her was a sign of the times, “where it is dangerous to speak your mind”.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison has strongly supported Ms Deves, saying Australians are getting “fed-up” with having to walk on egg shells because they may say something one day that is going to upset someone.