When Queensland Senator Fraser Anning flew to Melbourne at government expense to join a far right demonstration that supports violence against immigrants from Africa and all things Jewish, it brought the sight of Nazi salutes on Australian soil.
It is interesting to follow the career of this man who now represents the people of Queensland in the Australian Senate. He was born in 1949 and later stood as a candidate for the senate under the banner of Pauline Hanson's One Nation party. He was an unsuccessful candidate, receiving just nineteen votes.
The issue of eligibility to sit in the Senate because of citizenship issues unseated the successful One Nation Senator Malcom Roberts in 2017 and this necessitated a count back which elevated Fraser Anning to the position held by Senator Roberts, but he fell out with Pauline Hanson and took his seat in the Senate as an independent. In his maiden speech he angered many with support references to " the final solution " which was Hitler's code word for the Holocaust.
Senator Anning's party affiliation changed in June 2018 when he joined Katter's Australian party, but his vindictive racism was too much and he was expelled in October, 2018 and has since resumed his seat as an independent.
We are seeing a resurgence of the far right philosophy on a world wide basis and particularly in Europe. Political parties with Nazi roots have gained representation in Germany and Austria on the wings of unrest about excessive immigration numbers flowing over their country's borders. They are reviving anti Jewish rhetoric and uphold white supremacy. This movement is gaining a toe hold in Australia as that rally on a St Kilda beach demonstrated.
One of the freedoms we enjoy in Australia is the right to choose the brand of politics that suits our outlook. This Nazi philosophy is the shortened version of " National Socialism " which ravaged the world during the second world war and killed millions of people. It is violently anti Jewish and upholds racial purity which excludes all who lack a white skin tone. It seeks to impose its outlook on the community with violence.
This Australian Nazi manifestation seems centred in Melbourne and claims to be concerned at gang violence from youthful immigrants from Africa. This is probably exaggerated but young people from Africa are easily identified by their skin colour and all immigrant groups bring with them some degree of crime. In the past the Mafia arrived with immigrants from Italy and the Triads with the influx from Asia. It would be unusual if immigration from Africa was crime free.
Senator Anning is a phenomenon that will probably disappear at the next election. It is plainly laughable that we have a Senator who enjoys the salary and privileges of the Senate who attracted the vote of just nineteen voters. His unwinnable position on the One Nation ticket was transformed when a High Court decision displaced the voters choice and resulted in the elevation of a losing candidate.
Now it is up to the rules of the Senate to decide if the air fares and use of a Commonwealth car to transport a Queensland Senator to a far right rally in Melbourne is a justified expense. That cost the Australian taxpayer a little over three thousand dollars and it is up to Senator Anning to explain how that relates to his duties serving the electors of Queensland ?
As for the rise of the Far Right in Australia ? We live in a troubled world and some see answers by circling the wagons and looking inwards. National Socialism was a disaster for Germany - and for the rest of the world. We would be wise to remember the concentration camps and the ghettos when we see those Nazi salutes. Something that ended very badly !
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