📷: Paul Jeffers
A Victorian MP says an unprecedented level of “fury and anger” is being directed towards politicians online.
Reason Party leader Fiona Patten’s comments came after a man in Queensland was charged with harassing her on social media.
Ms Patten last year reported to parliamentary security a video posted to Facebook in which a man said he would “shave her head” and drag her up the street if she supported the government’s COVID-19 omnibus bill.
“It was just so extreme and so violent,” she said. “It was really outrageous, incredibly threatening and we just thought we can’t let that slide.”
…
“While I support free speech, I don’t support [the] inciting of crimes and vilification of people. Even now, I’m not on social media as much as I used to be, it did have a silencing effect.”
Ms Patten is pushing to widen the Racial and Religious Tolerance Act to include hate speech targeting people for their gender, disability, sexual orientation or gender identity, as well as addressing online trolling.
A parliamentary committee is reviewing Victoria’s anti-vilification laws, with hearings held last year.
Read the full article on The Age’s website.
