Pauline Hanson campaigning in WA for the Secret Harbour byelection last week. The One Nation leader says the Prime Minister and Treasurer have ‘crossed a line’. Photo: Pauline Hanson.
Pauline Hanson has accused Anthony Albanese of inciting violence towards her by saying she and her One Nation party are divisive and dangerous.
The Prime Minister delivered a strong rebuke of One Nation on Sunday (30 August) when addressing the party faithful at the Queensland State Labor Conference.
The day before, One Nation had snatched a seat from Labor to claim victory in a Western Australian state byelection.
“We have a Liberal Party that isn’t liberal, a National Party that isn’t national, and One Nation, whose leader seeks to divide Australians; talks Australia down both here and overseas,” Mr Albanese told conference delegates.
Later in his speech, the PM went further, describing Australia and the labour movement as at a crucial time.
“Across the world hard right populists are on the march,” he said.
“Peddling politics that is dangerous, divisive, and downright dishonest.
“We simply must defeat them. We owe it to history. And we will defeat them … They’ll say anything and do anything to win votes. Bend any facts. Peddle misinformation and disinformation. Turn Australian against Australian.
“Parties like One Nation have no serious answers to our problems.”
At the same conference, Treasurer Jim Chalmers also described One Nation as a “dangerous threat” to Australia.
“The threat to our country and its cohesion, its people, and our economy is posed by a dangerous and divisive coalition of chaos – a three-ring circus of Liberals, Nationals, and One Nation,” Dr Chalmers said.
“Today the biggest fault lines in our politics aren’t just between the centre-left and the extreme right, but between those of us who want to address and alleviate the legitimate frustrations that people feel about the cost of living and other pressures, and those who just want to picket them and prey on them, to politicise them and capitalise on them, while leaving our major challenges largely undisturbed.”
On Monday, Senator Hanson said the Prime Minister and his Treasurer Jim Chalmers had “crossed a line” in the way they had described her and One Nation.
She said such emotive language can incite political violence, as it did in the United Kingdom with the murder in July of former British conservative MP Ann Widdecombe.
The One Nation leader posted a lengthy social media post to denounce the pair and their speeches.
“The attacks from Chalmers and Albanese on One Nation have become increasingly desperate. Yesterday they crossed a line,” she wrote.
“No matter how worried Jim and Albanese are about losing their jobs, telling Australians that their democratically elected opponents are ‘dangerous’ and a ‘threat to our country’ invites people to treat them as a threat.
“Words have consequences. That is how political violence is incited.
“The murder of Ann Widdecombe in Britain should be warning enough about the dangers of poisonous political rhetoric.
“Anthony Albanese says we need to turn down the heat and violent rhetoric in our political discourse.
“Meanwhile, he and his Treasurer are pouring petrol all over it.”
Senator Hanson said Australians are entitled to vote for One Nation without being told by the Treasurer and the Prime Minister that their democratic choice is a danger to the nation.
“The real danger is that Jim and Albanese’s incompetent economic management will continue to push your rent, your mortgage and your bills even higher,” she said.
“The real danger to Jim and Albanese is that the people of Australia are coming for their government … at the ballot box.”
The One Nation leader subsequently posted that she supported free speech and open debate as “fundamental parts of our democracy”, but drew the line at “normalising and encouraging” potential incitements to violence.
“Jim Chalmers and Anthony Albanese crossed that line yesterday in their attacks on One Nation,” she said.
“Free speech and open debate is only possible when everyone is protected from the threat of violence in response to what they say.
“Labor politicians seem to get a free pass to use language they would never allow others to use.
“When democratically elected parties are described as ‘threats’ and a ‘danger to the country’ by the Prime Minister and the Treasurer, people will take those words seriously.
“Jim Chalmers and Anthony Albanese need to take their own advice and ‘turn the temperature down’.”
One Nation’s win in the WA state electorate of Secret Harbour is the first the party has secured in that state’s Lower House and shows it is not only a threat to the Coalition but also to Labor.
Federal Liberal frontbencher Andrew Hastie holds the seat of Canning, which encompasses the state electorate One Nation has just won.
Original Article published by Chris Johnson on Region Canberra.
