Forget Hamas, glass-jawGreens senator Mehreen Faruqi declares war on satire: ‘Cartoon will cost mevotes’
STEPHEN RICE
16 hours ago.
Updated 4 hours ago
Greens senator Mehreen Faruqui in theSenate; Johannes Leak's cartoon, top left; Faruqui pictured with protesters,bottom left. Picture: Martin Ollman/NewsWire
Greens senatorMehreen Faruqi has threatened to sue The Australian for defamation and demandedan apology over a Johannes Leak cartoon that portrayed her wearing a Hamas headbandand whitewashing a wall bearing the words ‘October 7’, claiming the depictionwas “racist” and would cost her votes at the next election.
The Australian hastold Senator Faruqi it will not accede to any of her “grossly hypocritical”demands, and that the cartoon – which it argues is clearly protected by truthand honest opinion defences – will remain online.
The cartoon,published on Monday last week, shows the Greens deputy leader using a rollerto apply white wash to obscure the date of the Hamas terror attack on Israelin which almost 1200 people died, while saying: “What’s the big deal? It’sjust a bit of paint …” The cartoon followed Senator Faruqi’s repeated refusal on the ABC’s Insiders to call for theterror group to be dismantled, saying that was up to the Palestinian people to decide.
Senator Faruqi saidthe Greens were not demanding any change to the listing of Hamas as a terroristorganisation but “it’s not up to me to say who should be gone or not”.
The cartoon alsoreferences Senator Faruqi’s attempt to play down the defacing of the Australian WarMemorial with pro-Palestinian graffiti as nothing more than “some painton a building”.
In its response toSenator Faruqi’s lawyers, The Australian said it was “surprised and bemusedthat your client is threatening legal action given her comments can only beunderstood to mean that the barbaric Hamas regime, a listed terrorist group andthe perpetrators of the October 7 atrocity, has some legitimacy if it issupported by the Palestinian people”.
In the circumstances,the cartoon was “somewhat mild”, the paper said, and in any event waspart of an important political discussion.
