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Hanson ruling proves Australia's free-speech laws are broken: Family First renews call to repeal hate speech laws

Family First Party

Family First National Director and NSW Legislative Council lead candidate Lyle Shelton has renewed the party's long-standing call for the repeal of Australia's anti-free speech "hate speech", anti-vilification and anti-discrimination laws following the Federal Court's decision to dismiss Pauline Hanson's appeal in her case against Greens Senator Mehreen Faruqi.

 

Mr Shelton said Australians should never face court proceedings or crippling legal costs simply because someone claims to have been offended by political speech.

 

"Freedom of speech is one of the defining freedoms Australians inherited and generations of ANZACs fought to defend. Yet today, Australians can be dragged before tribunals and courts simply because someone says their feelings were hurt," Mr Shelton said.

 

"Whether people agree or disagree with Pauline Hanson's comments (I agree with them) is beside the point. In a free country, robust political speech should be answered with more speech, not lawsuits."

 

Mr Shelton said Senator Faruqi's comments on the death of Queen Elizabeth II, in which she described the late monarch as the leader of a "racist empire", were deeply disrespectful to millions of Australians.

 

“While the British Empire had its faults, it also did much good. The fact that its former colonies chose to remain part of the British Commonwealth of Nations after de-colonisation shows any racism from the past had been well and truly remedied. One of the late Queen’s enduring legacies was her successful leadership of the Commonwealth of Nations, which is currently conducting its games in Glascow.

 

"Senator Faruqi was perfectly free to express her disrespectful views without any legal sanction. Yet Pauline Hanson now faces potentially hundreds of thousands of dollars in legal costs for responding. Australians can see the double standard."

 

Mr Shelton said Australia's anti-vilification laws had become political weapons used selectively against ordinary Australians.

 

"Islamic activists and the LGBTIQA+ political movement have become particularly adept at weaponising these flawed laws to silence debate and intimidate opponents. That was never the purpose of free speech in a liberal democracy."

 

Family First has consistently opposed Section 18C of the Commonwealth Racial Discrimination Act and is calling for its repeal, along with comparable provisions contained in anti-discrimination and anti-vilification legislation in every Australian state and territory.

 

Mr Shelton said his own long-running legal battle over a 2020 blog post criticising Drag Queen Story Time illustrated how these laws are routinely used to punish citizens for participating in public debate.

 

"I've spent years defending myself in Queensland courts because I expressed concerns about drag queen events for children. The process itself has become the punishment."

 

He also pointed to the recent NSW Supreme Court decision involving women's rights advocate Kirralie Smith, where the court upheld findings against her and left standing damages totalling $95,000 after she identified two biological males competing in women's soccer as men.

 

"Whatever your view of these issues, Australians should be alarmed that people can be financially ruined simply for expressing opinions about matters of obvious public importance."

 

Mr Shelton said identity politics had infected Australia's legal system, replacing the nation's tradition of robust public debate with censorship and intimidation.

 

"Our nation was built on the principle that free people should be able to argue ideas without fear of government punishment or activist lawfare."

 

"Identity politics is dividing Australians into competing grievance groups while undermining the equal freedom every citizen should enjoy."

 

Mr Shelton said Family First would campaign to elect Members of Parliament committed to restoring genuine freedom of speech by dismantling laws that punish peaceful expression.

 

"We need politicians with the courage to restore Australia's proud tradition of free and open debate."

 

"It is time our political leaders honoured the freedoms defended by the ANZAC generation by repealing anti-free speech laws that have no place in a free Australia."

 

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