Greens senator Mehreen Faruqi mulls human rights commission complaint over ‘racist’ Pauline Hanson Twitter war

“If you need assistance in going back to the ‘turd swirl’ called Pakistan … let me know.” “Do yourself a favour and neck up before somebody gets you first. You filthy pig.” “Piss off back to your grubby Muslim country where woman are treated like sub-human slaves.” “Haha that faruqi moslem prostitute is getting what the homosexual man deserves online.” And perhaps the most ironic - “You muslim dogs are racist.” These are just a few of the barrage of hate-fuelled comments Dr Mehreen Faruqi has copped in the wake of a heated exchange between the Greens senator and One Nation leader Pauline Hanson in less than a week. The worst of them are too vile for publication. War between the senators was sparked on Friday when Senator Faruqi tweeted her reaction to news of the death of Queen Elizabeth. “Condolences to those who knew the Queen,” she tweeted. “I cannot mourn the leader of a racist empire built on stolen lives, land and wealth of colonised peoples. “We are reminded of the urgency of Treaty with First Nations, justice & reparations for British colonies & becoming a republic.” The divisive tweet unleashed an onslaught of online hate, including from Senator Hanson who swiftly told Senator Faruqi to “piss off back to Pakistan”. Senator Jacqui Lambie also joined the pile on. Senator Lambie initially tweeted that “Pauline (was) right on the mark!”, seemingly undeterred by the aggression in Hanson’s tweet. The Jacqui Lambie Network party leader later backpedalled on her comment, however, and issued a statement by way of explanation three days later. “It is hugely offensive that the deputy leader of Australia’s third largest political party would use the death of the Queen as an opportunity to accuse anyone who mourns it of being a racist,” Senator Lambie wrote. “That’s just wrong. We are talking about the death of a human being with a family, who was loved, who served her country with dignity. “I don’t agree with all of Pauline’s tweet, or the language she used, but I do agree that the attitude on show here is pretty disgraceful.” Despite her efforts to defuse the situation, Lambie’s statement has been condemned for missing the mark. Speaking exclusively to The West Australian, the senator at the centre of the Twitter storm has revealed the toll the incident and its resulting abuse and threats levelled at her have taken. And what she plans to do about it. “People who look like me have all been told to go back to where they come from at one point or another,” Senator Faruqi said. “I’ve copped it more times than I can count but the hurt and sorrow it causes never lessens,” “The kind of racist hate fuelled by these comments cannot go unaddressed. The community, particularly migrants of colour, need to see Parliament strongly condemn Senator Hanson without delay. “Of course, there’s going to be disagreement about the Queen’s legacy in the wake of her passing, but there’s never an excuse for attacking someone for who they are. “I won’t be silenced and neither will the millions of others around the world affected by the brutal reality of colonisation.” Pakistan-born Senator Faruqi joined the NSW State Parliament in 2013, becoming the first Muslim woman to sit in an Australian parliament. In 2018, the passionate advocate against racism and misogyny became Australia’s first Muslim senator. Senator Faruqi returned to Twitter on Thursday morning to call for Parliament to hold her antagonist to account for her comments in the hope that she and other culturally diverse senators can feel safe from attack in the workplace. “No decent workplace would tolerate such brazen discrimination against a colleague,” Senator Faruqi said. “The Jenkins review showed us how toxic and unsafe Parliament can be. “If Parliament is to be a safe workplace, we need to send a clear message that this hostility to migrants and people of colour will not be tolerated. “If Labor is serious about setting a high standard of behaviour from parliamentarians, this is their opportunity.” Senator Faruqi announced the Greens’ plan to censure Senator Hanson when Parliament sits on September 26, adding that Senator Lambie’s contribution to the pile on was the additional impetus needed to send a clear message to her counterparts. She revealed that she is also considering making a complaint to the human rights commission. “It was disgusting to see Senator Lambie give her full-throated support to Senator Hanson before misrepresenting my words to try and wriggle out of it,” Senator Faruqi said. “This censure motion is Senator Lambie’s chance to straighten herself out.”