Alex Antic (SA, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

On Saturday a rally designed to let women speak was held in Melbourne, at which women's rights advocates and MPs like Victorian MP Moira Deeming spoke. The movement is rightfully concerned about biological men undermining the integrity of women's sports and spaces such as bathrooms. They're absolutely correct to be concerned; I am too. The rally was gatecrashed by a group of apparent Neo-Nazis, and like most Australians I unreservedly condemn those views. But one wonders how it's possible that Victoria Police managed to hold back the trans activists but were not able to do the same with the apparent Neo-Nazis. It's all very odd. Perhaps that's a question Premier Daniel Andrews could answer. The invaders were condemned by the rally organisers, who had nothing to do with the arrival of these gatecrashers. Moira Deeming, MP, also had nothing to do with these people and condemned them herself.

It's a shameful reflection on the lazy partisan media and our political classes that Ms Deeming would be vilified for something over which she had absolutely no control. How is this different from a member of the Australian Labor Party or the Australian Greens attending a rally for Palestine which is descended upon by antisemitic or union thugs? The answer to that is it's no different at all. The only thing that's different here is the media and the political class cannot find the requisite spine to stand for a principle. Is this the low-water mark of our free speech and our democracy, to now be defined by those who gatecrash an event? Those who have once again danced to the beat of the drum created by the Left of politics and their allies in the censorship industrial complex—that is, the mainstream media—should hang their heads in shame. Moira did nothing wrong.