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Lidia Thorpe censured after King Charles protest

An unrepentant Lidia Thorpe told parliament she would repeat her protest to the King. (Mick Tsikas/AAP PHOTOS)

By Kat Wong in Canberra

The Senate has reprimanded independent senator Lidia Thorpe over her protest at a parliamentary ceremony for King Charles during the monarch’s Australian tour.

Government leader Penny Wong said the senator’s outburst sought to “incite outrage and grievance”.

“This is part of a trend that we do see internationally which, quite frankly, we do not need here in Australia,” Senator Wong told parliament on Monday.

Senator Thorpe challenged the King and Queen Camilla during a welcome reception at Parliament House in October.

The indigenous senator claimed the monarch had “committed genocide against our people” and urged him to “give us what you stole from us – our bones, our skulls, our babies, our people”.

Senator Wong said the censure vote – 46-12 – signalled that Australian politicians should uphold standards of respect during visits by dignitaries.

Senator Thorpe arrived in the chamber after the vote, citing a plane delay for her absence.

“Shame on you all” she said.

“If (the king) comes back in, I’ll do it again.”

Greens senator Mehreen Faruqi decried the motion and called on politicians to listen to the concerns of indigenous Australians.

“The bubble of white privilege that encapsulates this parliament is a systemic issue,” she said.

“That’s why we are here today, debating a black senator being censured for telling the truth of the British crown’s genocide on First Nations people and telling it the way she wants to.”

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Ian Meikle, editor

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