Pauline Hanson lashes out in remembrance of the Queen: ‘Disgusts me’

Controversial senator Pauline Hanson has lashed out at her political opponents in an ugly spat in the wake of the Queens’s death on Friday.

A number of the Greens called for the country to move towards becoming a republic and made a note of not publicly mourning the monarch’s passing.

“I cannot mourn the leader of a racist empire built on stolen lives, land and wealth of colonised peoples,” tweeted NSW senator Mehreen Faruqi, deputy leader of the Greens.

“We are reminded of the urgency of Treaty with First Nations, justice & reparations for British colonies & becoming a republic.”

The Senators’ public spat could foreshadow another ugly debate ahead for Australia in the wake of the Queen’s death. Source: AAP

Her sentiment echoed that of Greens leader Adam Bandt. While far less incendiary, he took the opportunity to offer condolences while also calling for an Australian Republic.

“Now Australia must move forward. We need Treaty with First Nations people, and we need to become a Republic,” he said.

But Pauline Hanson, who had earlier posted a heartfelt tribute to Her Majesty, did not hold back in admonishing her Greens colleague.

“Your attitude appalls and disgusts me. When you immigrated to Australia you took every advantage of this country. You took citizenship, bought multiple homes, and a job in a parliament. It’s clear you’re not happy, so pack your bags and piss off back to Pakistan,” she publicly responded to Ms Faruqi on social media.

The vicious message drew a heated and mixed response from Aussies on social media with some labelling Ms Hanson “racist” and “shameless” while others rallied behind her, highlighting the potentially divisive debate that could lie ahead if Australia again looks to sever formal colonial ties with Britain.

Republicans believe the Queen’s passing will reignite a campaign to achieve Australia’s constitutional independence.

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Those in Australia eager to see us sever such formal ties have long acknowledged the personal popularity enjoyed by Elizabeth II but it’s a different story when it coms to King Charles III.

Royalists, like former prime minister Tony Abbott, believe another push towards a republic will meet the same fate as it suffered in the 1999 referendum when it was not only defeated overall (45-55 per cent in rounded figures) but failed to garner majority support in any state. Only the ACT differed, with 63 per cent in favour.

The republican campaign, led back then by future Liberal prime minister Malcolm Turnbull, was hamstrung by disagreements over which model should be proposed and opposition by John Howard, described by Mr Turnbull as “the prime minister who broke a nation’s heart”.

Australian Republican Movement Chief Malcolm Turnbull looked confident in 1999. Source: AAP

The Australian Republic Movement’s current leadership believes the Queen’s death changes things.

With the right conditions – including a more acceptable model and backing from The Lodge – Australia could hold another referendum and be a republic within two years, they say.

“A phenomenal number of people have said to me over the years, ‘I’m absolutely with you, but not until the Queen passes away’. And I expect now there will be a surge of interest, of membership, of donations,” chair Peter FitzSimons said.

“With the greatest respect to Charles III – and I mean that; I have nothing against him personally – he does not enjoy the same deep wellspring of affection and loyalty that Her Majesty did.

“It’s 230-odd years since colonisation and over 120 years since federation. It has to be time we run our own show beneath the Southern Cross,” Mr FitzSimons said.

Polls generally have shown support for a republic steadily ebbing since a peak in December 1999 – when 57 per cent of Australians were in favour – immediately after the failed referendum.

Some commentators say the republican cause was not helped by former US president Donald Trump, who did little to make a presidential system appealing for many Australians.

Mr FitzSimons said the Ipsos poll was an outlier, pointing to a YouGov poll in 2020 that found 62 per cent of Australians wanted their head of state to be an Australian.

with AAP

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