One Nation leader Pauline Hanson has launched a High Court appeal after losing a legal battle over a social media post telling Greens senator Mehreen Faruqi to ‘pack your bags and piss off back to Pakistan’.
Hanson announced on Friday that she will seek special leave to challenge a Full Federal Court ruling, which found her 2022 post breached section 18C of the Racial Discrimination Act.
Framing her move as a fight for free speech, Hanson argued the law places unacceptable limits on political debate.
‘I’m taking this fight to the High Court for every Australian who feels they are being silenced and told to keep their opinions to themselves,’ she said.
The case traces back to September 2022, when Faruqi criticised Queen Elizabeth II after the monarch’s death.
Hanson responded online, telling the Greens senator to leave Australia and go back to Pakistan, where she was born.
The Full Federal Court ruled those comments breached section 18C, which bans conduct that offends, insults, humiliates or intimidates another person because of their race, colour or national or ethnic origin.
Hanson said Australians are becoming increasingly fearful of expressing views on contentious issues, for fear of being called racist or subjected to legal action.
Pauline Hanson (pictured) said she would challenge a full federal court ruling on 18C
‘Too many Australians are afraid to speak honestly about immigration, race, religion, Indigenous policy and other important issues because they worry they will be called racist, dragged through a complaints process or taken to court,’ she said.
‘That is not how a free country should work. Australians choose their government. The government should never get to choose what Australians are allowed to say.’
Hanson argued the case raises broader questions about how section 18C interacts with the implied freedom of political communication under the Constitution.
‘I don’t mince my words. I never have. People know exactly where I stand. But speaking plainly about political issues should not put you in court,’ she said.
She referenced findings in the Full Federal Court decision that acknowledged her comments formed part of political communication.
‘The Full Federal Court accepted that my comments were close to the core of political communication protected by our Constitution,’ Hanson said.
‘It also accepted section 18C casts a wide net, sets a relatively low bar and places a significant burden on political communication.’
Hanson said she is seeking a High Court ruling on whether section 18C properly balances protection from racial discrimination with the right to free speech.
Hanson was found to have breached 18C of the Racial Discrimination Act in a post about Faruqi
‘I believe Australians should be able to disagree with each other. They should be able to argue,’ she said.
‘They should be able to say things other people don’t like. Freedom of speech means nothing if it only protects words everyone agrees with.’
She rejected claims her case was about special rights for politicians, instead describing it as a test of ordinary Australians’ right to freely participate in public debate.
‘This case is not about giving politicians special rights. It is about the right of regular Australians to take part in the political debates that shape their country without being frightened into silence,’ Hanson said.
She vowed to continue her fight, insisting many Australians feel public debate is being increasingly restricted.
‘Millions of Australians feel like they have been told there are things they are simply not allowed to say anymore,’ Hanson said.
‘I hear from them all the time. I will not be silenced, and I will take this fight as far as I can for Australians who feel they no longer have a voice.’
