CANBERRA: Indigenous senator Lidia Thorpe shouted anti-colonial slogans at King Charles during his visit to the Australian parliament on Monday, shocking assembled lawmakers and other dignitaries.
“Give us our land back! Give us what you stole from us!” Thorpe screamed in an almost minute-long diatribe, after the 75-year-old king’s speech.
“This is not your land, you are not my king,” the independent lawmaker said, decrying what she described as a “genocide” of Indigenous Australians by European settlers.
Australia was a British colony for more than 100 years, during which time thousands of Aboriginal Australians were killed and entire communities displaced.
The country gained de facto independence in 1901, but has never become a fully fledged republic. King Charles is the current head of state.
Charles is on a nine-day jaunt through Australia and Samoa, the first major foreign tour since his life-changing cancer diagnosis earlier this year.
Thorpe is known for her attention-grabbing political stunts and fierce opposition to the monarchy.
When she was sworn into office in 2022, Thorpe raised her right fist as she begrudgingly swore to serve Queen Elisabeth II, who was then Australia’s head of state.
“I sovereign, Lidia Thorpe, do solemnly and sincerely swear that I will be faithful and I bear true allegiance to the colonizing Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II,” she said before being rebuked by a Senate official.
“Senator Thorpe, Senator Thorpe, you are required to recite the oath as printed on the card,” said the chamber’s president Sue Lines.
In 1999, Australians narrowly voted against removing the queen, amid a row over whether her replacement would be chosen by members of parliament, not the public.
In 2023 Australians overwhelmingly rejected measures to recognize Indigenous Australians in the constitution at to create an Indigenous consultative assembly.
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King Charles heckled by lawmaker at Australian parliament
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King Charles heckled by lawmaker at Australian parliament
- “Give us our land back! Give us what you stole from us!” Thorpe screamed in an almost minute-long diatribe
US approves $11 billion in arms sales to Taiwan: Taipei
TAIPEI: Washington has approved $11 billion-worth of arms to Taiwan, Taipei said Thursday, announcing one of the largest weapons packages for the island as it seeks to deter a potential Chinese invasion.
While Washington is traditionally Taiwan’s biggest arms supplier, remarks by US President Donald Trump raised doubts about his willingness to defend the democratic island.
Taiwan has ramped up its defense spending in the past decade as China has intensified military pressure, but Trump’s administration has pushed the island to do more to protect itself.
The arms sale announced on Thursday, which still needs US Congressional approval, would be the second since Trump returned to office in January, after the $330 million sale of parts and components in November.
The latest, much bigger cache features HIMARS rocket systems, howitzers, anti-tank missiles, drones and other equipment, according to Taipei’s foreign ministry.
“This is the second arms sale to Taiwan announced during the Trump administration’s second term, once again demonstrating the US’s firm commitment to Taiwan’s security,” Taipei’s foreign ministry said.
The potential size of the sale rivals the $18 billion authorized under former US president George W. Bush in 2001, although that was ultimately downsized after commercial negotiations.
Bush ended up selling $15.6 billion-worth of weapons to Taiwan over his eight years in office.
During Trump’s first term, the United States approved $10 billion in arms sales to Taiwan, including $8 billion for fighter jets.
The latest package is expected to soon receive a Congressional rubber stamp, given the cross-party consensus on Taiwan’s defense.
Taiwan maintains its own defense industry but the island would be massively outgunned in a conflict with China, and so remains heavily reliant on US arms.
The latest arms sale shows Washington has continued to assist Taipei in “rapidly building robust deterrence capabilities,” Taiwan’s defense ministry said in a statement.
Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te’s government has vowed to ramp up defense spending to more than three percent of the GDP next year and five percent by 2030, following US pressure.
It is also plans to seek up to NT$1 trillion in special funding to upgrade the island’s air defense systems and increase capacity to produce and store ammunition.
The defense spending proposals need backing from the island’s opposition-controlled parliament before they can take effect.
China deploys military aircraft and warships around Taiwan on a near-daily basis, which analysts describe as “grey-zone” operations — coercive tactics that fall short of an act of war.
Taipei’s defense ministry said 40 Chinese military aircraft, including fighters, choppers and drones, as well as eight naval vessels, were detected around Taiwan in a 24-hour period ending early Thursday.
On Tuesday, Beijing’s third and newest aircraft carrier, the Fujian, sailed through the Taiwan Strait, according to Taipei.
While Washington is traditionally Taiwan’s biggest arms supplier, remarks by US President Donald Trump raised doubts about his willingness to defend the democratic island.
Taiwan has ramped up its defense spending in the past decade as China has intensified military pressure, but Trump’s administration has pushed the island to do more to protect itself.
The arms sale announced on Thursday, which still needs US Congressional approval, would be the second since Trump returned to office in January, after the $330 million sale of parts and components in November.
The latest, much bigger cache features HIMARS rocket systems, howitzers, anti-tank missiles, drones and other equipment, according to Taipei’s foreign ministry.
“This is the second arms sale to Taiwan announced during the Trump administration’s second term, once again demonstrating the US’s firm commitment to Taiwan’s security,” Taipei’s foreign ministry said.
The potential size of the sale rivals the $18 billion authorized under former US president George W. Bush in 2001, although that was ultimately downsized after commercial negotiations.
Bush ended up selling $15.6 billion-worth of weapons to Taiwan over his eight years in office.
During Trump’s first term, the United States approved $10 billion in arms sales to Taiwan, including $8 billion for fighter jets.
The latest package is expected to soon receive a Congressional rubber stamp, given the cross-party consensus on Taiwan’s defense.
Taiwan maintains its own defense industry but the island would be massively outgunned in a conflict with China, and so remains heavily reliant on US arms.
The latest arms sale shows Washington has continued to assist Taipei in “rapidly building robust deterrence capabilities,” Taiwan’s defense ministry said in a statement.
Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te’s government has vowed to ramp up defense spending to more than three percent of the GDP next year and five percent by 2030, following US pressure.
It is also plans to seek up to NT$1 trillion in special funding to upgrade the island’s air defense systems and increase capacity to produce and store ammunition.
The defense spending proposals need backing from the island’s opposition-controlled parliament before they can take effect.
China deploys military aircraft and warships around Taiwan on a near-daily basis, which analysts describe as “grey-zone” operations — coercive tactics that fall short of an act of war.
Taipei’s defense ministry said 40 Chinese military aircraft, including fighters, choppers and drones, as well as eight naval vessels, were detected around Taiwan in a 24-hour period ending early Thursday.
On Tuesday, Beijing’s third and newest aircraft carrier, the Fujian, sailed through the Taiwan Strait, according to Taipei.
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