Lidia Thorpe's "pledge" to Queen Elizabeth raises questions
Senator Lidia Thorpe has revealed she twisted her words during her pledge of allegiance while being sworn in to Parliament, leaving other senators calling for action.
While explaining her stunt in Canberra during King Charles' visit to Australia, Thorpe said she did not regret her protest against the monarch.
She said King Charles III, who she called “Charlie” was “not the King of this country” and suggested the royal family, from a historical perspective, were “murdering thieves”.
“The colonial system is all about shutting Blak women down in this country. They have got a very good track record of that,” she said on ABC.
“I can tell you now there are Elders, grassroots Aboriginal people across this country and Torres Strait Islander people who are just so proud (of her protest),” Senator Thorpe said.
“They say that it has lit a fire back in their belly and they want to join the resistance. I have been contacted by Elders who have said, particularly a Ngunnawal Elder who said, ‘I wished you had told me you were going to do that because I would have walked right beside you’”.
Following Thorpe's outburst, Victorian Nationals Senator Bridget McKenzie has raised concerns this week that her outburst may have involved renouncing her sworn parliamentary affirmation to be faithful and bear true allegiance to the monarch.
ABC host Greg Bennett posed the question to Thorpe, “Did you renounce that in the comments you delivered in the Great Hall?,” to which the Senator said she never did in the first place.
“And I swore allegiance to the Queen’s hairs, if you listen close enough,” she said. “It was her hairs, not her heirs that I was giving my allegiance to and now that they are no longer here, I don’t know where that stands."
“I’m not giving up my job, I’m not resigning. I am not an expert on colonial laws. The only experience I have had with colonial laws is the violence of them and the violence of pledging allegiance to the oppressor is absolutely out of date and absolutely a disgusting thing to make someone do."
“This country wants to swear allegiance to a king from another country whose ancestors have been responsible for massacres, so many massacres in this country, killing our children and women. Why would I, with my hand on my heart, kneel to an oppressor?"
National Senator Bridget McKenzie said that Senator Thorpe had questions to answer, saying on ABC radio, “Senator Thorpe, I think, is the only parliamentarian that I’ve ever known to disavow their oath of allegiance to our sovereign and their heirs and successors according to law.”
“So if it was happening in a court of law where you breached your oath, that’s contempt, that’s perjury, that’s a criminal offence, and so I think there are some legitimate questions to be asked about this and what is the consequence of Senator Thorpe’s action from a constitutional perspective.”
But Monash University constitutional law professor Luke Beck disagreed, saying, “Engaging in protest activity is not grounds for disqualification. Advocating for a republic is not a ground for disqualification.“
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