The Federal Court has ruled Pauline Hanson racially vilified Greens Senator Mehreen Faruqi by making a racist remark to her online.
The One Nation leader has been ordered to delete a Tweet she posted two years ago and pay Faruqi’s legal costs.
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Faruqi said, “This ruling draws a line that hate speech is not free speech and those who subject people to racial abuse will not get away scot-free.”
The tweet told Faruqi to “piss off back to Pakistan”
The judge found Hanson’s comment was an “evident racist trope” and a “strong form of racism”.
Pauline Hanson posted on X that she’s deeply disappointed by the judgement and will be appealing it.
“The outcome demonstrates the inappropriately broad application of section 18C, particularly in so far as it impinges upon freedom of political expression,” her post read.
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