MELBOURNE, Australia — Pro-Palestinian protesters breached security at Australia’s Parliament House on Thursday to unfurl banners from the roof, as tensions over Israel’s war against Hamas dominated Parliament’s final sitting day before a five-week break.
According to Associated Press (AP), four protesters were arrested after draping banners with the words “war crimes” and “genocide,” as well as the Palestinian rallying cry “from the river to the sea, Palestine will be free,” over the building’s façade known as the Great Verandah. The banners remained in place for over an hour before the protesters were apprehended.
Inside the building, Afghanistan-born Senator Fatima Payman, the only Australian federal lawmaker ever to wear a hijab during sittings, announced her resignation from the ruling Labor Party due to her refusal to adhere to the party line on Gaza. “My family did not flee from a war-torn country to come here as refugees for me to remain silent when I see atrocities inflicted on innocent people,” Payman told reporters. “Witnessing our government’s indifference to the greatest injustice of our times makes me question the direction the party is taking,” she added.
Payman, who will continue to serve in the Senate as an independent lawmaker, is the first government lawmaker to leave since Prime Minister Anthony Albanese’s administration was elected in 2022. Last week, she defied her government colleagues by supporting a minor party’s motion that demanded the Senate “recognize the state of Palestine.” Australia does not currently recognize a Palestinian state, maintaining a policy committed to a two-state solution where Israel and a future Palestinian state can coexist in peace and security within internationally recognized borders.
The four protesters who breached security are expected to be charged with trespassing and have been banned from Parliament House for two years, according to a police statement. Their actions triggered a security crackdown in Parliament House, preventing many members of the public from entering the building. As a precaution, the public galleries of both the House of Representatives and the Senate were kept empty.
House Speaker Milton Dick expressed deep concern over the protests and ordered an upgrade of security measures. Police are investigating how the protesters gained access to a secure area. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese condemned the protest in Parliament, stating, “Peaceful protest has an important place in our society, but this was not a peaceful protest. These actions have done absolutely nothing to advance any cause. Indeed, they have hurt the cause that those engaged in this reckless activity believe they are advancing.”
Opposition leader Peter Dutton demanded to know who allowed the protesters into the building and described their message as anti-Semitic. “We need to understand the gravity of this situation, because these images will be beamed around the world,” Dutton told Parliament.
