Senator Hollie Hughes – criticising the Government’s handling of visas

Photo of Senator Hollie Hughe
February 28, 2024

Yesterday, we saw reported in the paper that a convicted terrorist, someone who hijacked two planes and who is fundamentally an active member of a terrorist organisation, is planning to come to Australia to speak at a socialist conference. What a disgrace! The Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine—how dare they include Leila Khaled, who has terrorised and hijacked two planes.

Senator HUGHES (New South Wales) (15:24): Thank you, Mr Deputy President. I apologise to you, and I will start by saying that I did not tell a mistruth. I misspoke one letter. For that to be classified as a mistruth is an imputation, and the senator opposite may like to reflect on imputations.

What I want to talk about today is the fact that one of the jobs of the federal government is to keep Australians safe, and we know those opposite have absolutely no capacity to do that. That is becoming more and more obvious every single day. There has been zero leadership from this government when it comes to antisemitism. We know the rise of antisemitism that is occurring in this country is being absolutely fuelled by the lack of leadership that we see from those opposite in this incredibly important matter. It is absolutely appalling the way they conduct themselves when it comes to matters of immigration, when it comes to national security, when it comes to border security, when it comes to standing with our democratic partner in Israel, while they pander to seats in south-west Sydney. They are continually letting the Jewish Australian community down, which is actually just a part of the Australian community. They are not a separate group. They do not ghettoise themselves. They do not celebrate the deaths of other peoples like we have seen happen in Palestine and by those in Australia who align themselves with that cause.

If we want to talk about safety in this place, I find it incredibly distressing every time I walk to my office, where I see a cry for genocide conducted in a fellow senator’s office as she posts in her window the cry ‘From the river to the sea.’ Yet, from their activity, we know that those opposite stand by that sentiment, and we know, as we saw yesterday—

The DEPUTY PRESIDENT: Senator McKim?

Senator McKim: Senator Hughes is impugning the motives of other senators in the most disgraceful way by suggesting that other senators have a pride in genocide. That is blatantly untrue, and impugning the motives of other senators in that way is highly disorderly.

The DEPUTY PRESIDENT: I didn’t quite read it like that, Senator McKim, but I ask the honourable senator to be very careful with her language on a delicate issue.

Senator HUGHES: From speaking to Australians of the Jewish faith, I can tell you that they see that cry as very much a call for genocide, because the removal of the right of Israel to exist is exactly that: a call for genocide. We saw yesterday in the media—

Senator McKim interjecting

Senator HUGHES: Sorry, I can’t hear myself think over Senator McKim’s interjections.

The DEPUTY PRESIDENT: Senator McKim, please exercise restraint.

Senator HUGHES: Yesterday, we saw reported in the paper that a convicted terrorist, someone who hijacked two planes and who is fundamentally an active member of a terrorist organisation, is planning to come to Australia to speak at a socialist conference. What a disgrace! The Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine—how dare they include Leila Khaled, who has terrorised and hijacked two planes. Yet this government is still sitting on its hands when they have been called on to not provide a visa. We know this minister for immigration won’t be able to help himself, because not only are they pandering to south-west Sydney, pandering to their own far-left pro-Palestinian, anti-Israel elements within the Labor Party—they’ve got to keep the unicorn farmers up the end happy. But we absolutely have a problem with antisemitism in this country. It is getting worse and is absolutely disgraceful.

We know those opposite won’t do it. They’ll come here in their keffiyehs and they’ll stand for solidarity, completely ignoring that there was a ceasefire on 6 October. They endorse the views of people who somehow think of 7 October as a pogrom—the worst deaths of Jewish people and Israelis since the Holocaust. Yet we have a senator in this place now smiling at the pogrom, smiling at what happened to people in Israel on 7 October. What a disgrace!

Yet Home Affairs are going to sit on their hands and allow this absolutely disgraceful terrorist into this country. I’m sure we’ll see the Greens and those of the pro-Palestinian left in the Labor Party there cheering her on. But don’t worry, Australians: not only are we getting a terrorist in the country; if anyone who comes here wants to spike the drink of a woman and conduct indecent acts, then, as long as he’s a signed-up member and mate of the Labor Party, Andrew Giles will let him out. The minister will say: ‘Off you go! No ankle bracelet for you—no conditions for you—because you’re a Labor mate.’ We’re just interested to know: Is he enrolled to vote in Dunkley? Are you that worried about Saturday?

Link to Parliamentary Hansard