Crisafulli condemns flag burning, reigniting hate speech debate

The Queensland premier condemned the burning of an Australian flag at an Invasion Day protest in Brisbane on Monday, calling on the federal government to outlaw the act, and triggering fresh debate over hate speech legislation.

Several thousand people gathered in inner-Brisbane on Monday to protest against the date of Australia Day and support First Nations peoples, with one protester photographed burning an Australian flag.

Premier David Crisafulli said the incident was “as disgraceful as you get” and went beyond a legitimate form of protest, adding states would be willing to support the inclusion of flag burning in hate speech laws.

“I think it goes from legitimacy to being provocative,” he said.

“It goes a step further, which is why there has been that justifiable condemnation of the act.”

Crisafulli said while the decision would be one for the Commonwealth, “if the leaders in the nation’s capital decided that that was an offence, we’d certainly support it, and we’d certainly police that”.

“The flag is a really important part of who we are as a country, and we should all be tolerant and respectful of that,” he said.

Federal cabinet minister Amanda Rishworth also said the act was “absolutely disgraceful”, but she stopped short of saying Commonwealth laws were needed to prevent it.

“It comes back to respect, the basic premise of respect,” the employment and workplace relations minister said on Nine’s Today on Tuesday.

“There are a number of laws that exist at state jurisdictions and alike, but quite frankly, people need to be responsible and actually think about how their behaviour affects others.

“I think most people would just say it’s unacceptable and for people to be more respectful.”

The Invasion Day protest took place at Queens Gardens, while just streets away, a similar number of politicians and pundits from the other side of the political spectrum gathered at the Botanical Gardens.

Wrapped in an Australian flag despite the 38-degree heat, One Nation leader Pauline Hanson called on the crowd to back her party, which has leapt substantially in the polls since the Bondi terror attack.

Other speakers included fellow One Nation senator Malcolm Roberts and United Australia Party senator Ralph Babet.

The event was organised by Australia Marches, a right-wing group linked to March for Australia, which held rallies on the Gold Coast and in other state capitals.

In Melbourne, the rally was fronted by plainclothes neo-Nazis, who chanted “you will not replace us”, in an apparent reference to the neo-Nazi great replacement conspiracy.

That rally, which ended on the steps of Victoria’s Parliament House, was attended by One Nation’s Victorian director, Warren Pickering, alongside local candidates for the minor party.

The group had been diverted as it marched through the city amid fears it would arrive at Parliament House at the same time as Invasion Day protesters also moving through Melbourne’s CBD.

In Sydney, known members of Australia’s biggest neo-Nazi group, the National Socialist Network, were seen infiltrating crowds in the March for Australia rally, while Invasion Day protesters gathered in Hyde Park.

with Julius Dennis

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