Australia’s Senate suspended far-right senator Pauline Hanson on Tuesday for seven working days after she brought a burqa into Parliament as a political prop as part of her campaign to ban Muslim clothing in public, drawing condemnation from lawmakers.
Hanson entered the upper house wearing a burqa on Monday, a day after she was denied the right to propose legislation to ban burqas and other face coverings in public places. Her action immediately drew accusations of racism, including from Muslim advocates.
Foreign Affairs Minister Penny Wong, who leads the Labor government in the Senate, said:
“Senator Hanson’s hateful and shallow performance is destroying our social fabric, weakening Australia and harming the most vulnerable.”
She added that “Hanson mocked and belittled an entire religion – a religion practiced by almost a million Australians – and I have never seen such disrespect for Parliament”.
The motion to reprimand the leader of the One Nation party was passed by a vote of 55 to 5.
One Nation, which is cashing in on rising nationalist sentiment and anti-immigration politics, increased its presence in the Senate to four seats, winning two new seats in May’s general election. Recent polls show that support for Hanson and her party continues to grow.
VIDEO: Far-right Australian politician dons burqa in parliament, sparking outrage
Pauline Hanson of the anti-immigration One Nation party wore a burqa in parliament in a display that other lawmakers slammed as “racist” and “disrespectful”. Hanson was seeking to introduce a… pic.twitter.com/ctp0C84H7X
— AFP News Agency (@AFP) November 25, 2025
Hanson, however, stood by her views on the burqa, arguing that there is no dress code in Parliament.
– If you can’t enter a bank with a helmet or other places where they tell you to take it off, why should the burqa be any different – she told reporters in Canberra.
– I will stick to what I believe and I will continue to do it. In the end, the people will judge – she stated.
The Queensland senator first gained widespread attention in the 1990s for her staunch opposition to Asian immigration and the acceptance of asylum seekers, and has campaigned against Islamic clothing for years.
This is the second time Hanson has worn a burqa in Parliament, repeating a performance in 2017 when she also called for a nationwide ban on the garment.
(Vijesti.ba)
