Australian senator Lidia Thorpe censured for heckling King Charles during visit
Nov 19, 2024
Canberra [Australia], November 19: Australian lawmakers have voted to censure an Aboriginal senator who heckled King Charles during his visit to Canberra last month, to express their "profound disapproval" of her protest.
Lidia Thorpe shouted "you are not my King" and "this is not your land" shortly after the King addressed the Great Hall of Parliament, in an effort to highlight the impacts of British colonisation.
The Senate's censure, which passed 46-12, described Thorpe's actions as "disrespectful and disruptive" and said they should disqualify her from representing the chamber as a member of any delegation.
A censure motion is politically symbolic but carries no constitutional or legal weight.
Shortly after the Senate vote on Monday, Thorpe told reporters she had been denied her right to respond in the chamber due to a flight delay.
"The British Crown committed heinous crimes against the first peoples of this country... I will not be silent," the independent senator said. Thorpe is among those who have advocated for a treaty between Australia's government and its first inhabitants. (Agencies)
Source: Qatar Tribune
