Australian far-right senator Pauline Hanson caused a major uproar in Parliament on Monday. She entered the Senate chamber wearing a full burqa. She did this to push her demand for a nationwide ban on the Muslim face-covering garment. Muslim senators immediately called the act racist, according to AFP.
Hanson walked in wearing the burqa shortly after she was not allowed to introduce a bill that would ban burqas and other face-covering clothing in public places. This was not the first time she had done this. She used the same tactic years earlier to argue for the same ban.
As soon as she stepped into the chamber, chaos broke out. Several senators shouted in anger. The situation became so disruptive that proceedings had to be suspended. Hanson refused to take off the burqa even when she was asked.
Greens senator Mehreen Faruqi, who is Muslim, said Hanson’s behavior was openly racist. She called the act “blatant racism.” Another Muslim senator, Fatima Payman from Western Australia, said the stunt was disgraceful.
Hanson later posted a statement on Facebook. She said she wore the burqa because the Senate rejected her bill. She claimed she wanted to show Australians what she believes is at stake. She described the burqa as oppressive and dangerous. She said it is not religious and that it threatens national security and harms women. She ended by saying that if Parliament does not want her wearing it, then they should ban it.
Pauline Hanson is a senator from Queensland. She first became known in the 1990s for her strong stance against immigration, especially from Asia, and for her comments about asylum seekers. She has campaigned against Islamic clothing for many years. She also wore a burqa in Parliament in 2017 to make the same point.
Hanson’s One Nation party currently holds four seats in the Senate. The party gained two more seats in the most recent election as support for far-right anti-immigration views continued to grow in Australia.