One Nation Leader Pauline Hanson has released a statement calling on the Prime Minister to send the Palestinian refugees home now that Donald Trump has brokered peace between Israel and Hamas.
As Senator Hanson said in her tweet, ‘Temporary visas are meant to be just that, temporary.’
She added that, ‘Australians have shown compassion, but it’s time for the Albanese government to put our people first. Charity begins at home. Australians must come first.’
In total, Labor issued 3,449 of these special temporary visas. Of these, roughly 1,920 Palestinian refugees made it to Australia.
Dear Prime Minister,
Following the historic achievement of US President Donald Trump to end the war in Gaza, it’s time for Palestinians to return home.
Within hours of the Israeli hostage handover, bulldozers had begun work on rebuilding the war zone. A task I recognise will take time, but more importantly, manpower.
It is important that those Palestinians who fled the war to Australia are repatriated to their homeland to help restore the city and return their lives to normal.
I implore your government and the Department of Home Affairs to cease issuing any further 786 Temporary (Humanitarian Concern) visas.
The world has achieved peace in the Middle East, and Palestinians here on 12-month visitor visas should return home in accordance with those visa conditions.
In August of 2024, Senator Hanson was critical of the Labor government’s decision to accept refugees from Gaza given the widespread support of Hamas in the region and lack of acceptable vetting processes.
In an earlier tweet the Senator wrote:
Peter Dutton deserves credit for his call to stop the intake of refugees from Gaza. It is something I have called for in the past, and I’m glad to see the Coalition come to the right decision.
By contrast, the Albanese Labor government’s handling of this situation is reckless and dangerous.
We are talking about bringing in people from a war-torn region where 75 per cent of the population supports Hamas, a recognised terrorist organisation.
The Labor government is rushing through visas in just 24 to 48 hours, without proper security checks or a thorough understanding of who these people are.
They’re opening the door to potential threats without adequate scrutiny, all while failing to protect the safety and security of Australians.
The Senator also said, ‘The fact that nearby Arab countries refuse to take these refugees speaks volumes. Yet, the Labor government is more than willing to bring them here, potentially putting Australians at risk.’
Now that the war is over, it is reasonable that Australia’s hospitality and good-faith arrangement with these refugees be terminated.
The Department of Home Affairs made it clear that these were temporary humanitarian visas.
There will be a push by various activist, refugee, and charity organisations to make Palestinian refugees permanent residents. If allowed, this would be an abuse of the temporary humanitarian visa system.
Australians were promised these refugees would be sent home, and Labor must honour that promise or admit that they lied. As has been said many times, Australia is not a life-raft for the world’s wars. The bleeding hearts have bled the generosity of taxpayers completely dry.
It is time for Australia to heal. To look after its own poor and desperate people.
This country has lost patience with pro-Palestine marches taking over cities, disrupting the social and economic peace of our nation, and invigorating antisemitic and separatist movements.
Senator Pauline Hanson is right.
Labor must announce its intention to send the Palestinians home. Maybe the Syrians and Afghans too. Everywhere in the world where Trump has brought peace, those refugees can now return and rebuild their homelands while we restore Australia.
