Babet pulls down homophobic, racist post after Senate censure

Fringe senator Ralph Babet has pulled down a social media post spouting a string of racist and homophobic slurs after the Senate voted overwhelmingly to condemn his behaviour, claiming it could have been “taken out of context”.

The Senate issued a separate censure, which is a formal reprimand with no tangible consequences, to independent senator Lidia Thorpe on Monday for her Indigenous rights protest against King Charles III during his visit to parliament last month.

In a post on X this month, Babet, who represents mining magnate Clive Palmer’s United Australia Party, declared he would say “phaggot [sic], retard and n----r”.

“We are sick of you woke ass clowns,” Babet posted. “Cry more. Write an article. Tweet about me. No one cares what you think.”

On Monday, Babet issued a statement saying his Mauritian family had been the victims of racism and the words had been used in his home as a reflection of that abuse.

“As anyone who has been subjected to these names would know, they become imbedded [sic] in your mind,” Babet said. “I have reflected on the tweet, and the fact that it may have been taken out of context. I have now removed the tweet in hindsight. As the saying goes, a mistake is only an error, it becomes a mistake when you fail to correct it.”

Babet’s original post made no mention of his heritage and his statement did not explain the context of his ableist and homophobic language. It was one of a string of posts addressing a series of culture war topics that began with the misogynist influencer Andrew Tate celebrating the diminishing influence of mainstream institutions.

“The chances of me apologising for anything I’ve said on X are zero,” said Babet, who is still listed as a sales assistant at his family’s real estate firm, in another post on the same day.

Both censure motions were moved after more than 200 members of the public wrote to Senate President Sue Lyons to complain about the two separate incidents. The motions passed after the government’s Senate leader, Penny Wong, expressed the chamber’s “profound disapproval” of Thorpe and the Coalition lashed Babet’s language as “abhorrent”.

Thorpe stormed into the Senate on Monday morning after she was censured with 46 votes in favour and 12 against, yelling in protest. “Shame on you all … I’d do it again,” Thorpe shouted.

Wong’s motion expressed the Senate’s “profound disapproval” of Thorpe’s protest against the King and censured her for her disruptive and disrespectful conduct and for “her disrespect of democratic institutions”.

“In light of this conduct, [the Senate] does not regard it as appropriate for Senator Thorpe to represent the Senate as a member of any delegation during the life of this parliament,” the censure said.

It is common for senators to take taxpayer-funded trips overseas to speak with other countries’ parliaments and international institutions, a perk now denied to Thorpe.

Greens senators stood by their former colleague and voted against the censure motion of Thorpe, while Mehreen Faruqi described the motion as a disgrace.

Independent senator David Pocock joined the Greens in voting against Thorpe’s censure, but supported the move to condemn Babet.

Thorpe’s protest at the parliamentary ceremony to honour the King in late October made headlines around the world when she strode down the aisle yelling, “You are not our king. You are not sovereign”. She blamed the institution of the British Crown for Indigenous suffering and called for a treaty.

During a theatrical press conference, Thorpe tore a piece of paper to symbolise what she thought of the censure motion.

“I don’t give a damn about [the] censure motion. In fact, I’m going to use it for kindling later on in the week,” she said on Monday.

Thorpe described the Senate chamber as racist for its move to censure her and Babet at the same time.

“You’ve got a black senator standing up against the colony, against oppressive practices in this country, and they decide to [censure at the same time] some very racist and disrespectful comments that Senator Babet showed the world,” she said.

Nationals Senator Matt Canavan voted against the censure of Babet, describing the motion on X as “a kangaroo court”.

Opposition Senate leader Simon Birmingham, speaking for the Coalition, said Babet’s remarks went beyond freedom of speech.

“The words that he has placed on a public record are repugnant, are abhorrent and have no place in proper orderly, civil conduct and debate in 2024,” Birmingham said. “People are free to rail against political correctness or so-called wokism, but the way to do that is not to offend your fellow Australians, to demean your fellow Australians.”

The motion censured Babet for his “inflammatory use of hate speech, designed to drive division for his own political benefit”.

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