‘F— the colonies’: indigenous Australian senator heckles King

Lidia Thorpe disrupted reception after monarch delivered speech addressing First Nations people and their ‘traditional wisdom’

The Australian prime minister has condemned the “disrespectful” senator who heckled the King.
Anthony Albanese said Lidia Thorpe’s behaviour was not of the standard “Australians rightly expect of parliamentarians”.
Ms Thorpe, 51, an indigenous senator, accosted the King during a reception at Parliament House in Canberra, shouting “genocide” and “f— the colonies” before she was escorted from the Great Hall.
Moments earlier, the King had delivered a speech in which he addressed the First Nations people and their “traditional wisdom”, thanking them for their welcome ceremony and paying his respects to the “traditional owners of the lands on which we meet”.
After the speech, which also touched on both his and Elizabeth II’s memories of previous visits to Australia, as well as climate change, Ms Thorpe shouted: “You committed genocide against our people. Give us our land back”.
She added: “Give us what you stole from us: our bones, our skulls, our babies, our people.
“You destroyed our land, give us a treaty – we want a treaty, we want a treaty with this country. This is not your land. This is not your land.
“You are not my King, you are not our King. F—the colonies.”
She continued to berate the King as she was escorted from the hall by security.
The monarch appeared not to notice the outburst, as he simply turned to chat to Mr Albanese on his left. He was said to have been “unruffled” by the interruption.
Ms Thorpe, a seasoned protester who in 2022 described the late Queen as a “coloniser”, said later that she took action after her many letters to the King went unanswered.
She went on to post a cartoon on social media depicting the monarch’s decapitated head lying alongside a crown, captioned: “You are not our King”.
Buckingham Palace officials were said to be aware that Ms Thorpe was on the prospective guest list but decided it would be disrespectful not to invite her.
The independent senator is known for headline-grabbing protests. 
When she stationed herself outside a strip club in Melbourne last April, screaming profanities at the departing clientele, Mr Albanese branded her actions “unacceptable” and urged her to seek support for “obvious” health issues.
He was forced to speak out again on Monday, telling The Australian newspaper: “We are honoured to welcome their Majesties and share the joy of so many Australians in having them here. 
“The actions of the independent senator in the Great Hall were disrespectful. This is not the standard of behaviour Australians rightly expect of parliamentarians.”
Her actions were also condemned by a stream of fellow politicians.
Tony Abbott, the former Australian prime minister, who was in the hall at the time, dismissed it as “unfortunate political exhibitionism”.
Ralph Babet, a United Australia Party senator, said: “To show such utter disrespect to King Charles, who has travelled to Australia, despite ongoing cancer treatment, is disgusting.
“Senator Thorpe has disgraced not only herself and the Australian Parliament, but every Australian man, woman and child.”
Keith Payne, a Victoria Cross recipient who was also present, said: “I was absolutely amazed that she got through the door. That was uncalled for and un-Australian.”
Guests had gathered in the hall for a celebratory reception during the royal visit to Australia, with drinks and canapés served and a string quartet playing in the background.
In the King’s speech, he recalled his first visit to the country in 1966.
He spoke of the “life-shaping – and life-affirming – opportunity” to join a bush campus school, which left him a “more rounded – if not even somewhat chiselled – character once [he] had contended with brown snakes, leeches, funnel-web spiders and bull ants, and – bearing in mind this was very nearly 60 years ago – been given certain unmentionable parts of a bull calf to eat from a branding fire in outback Queensland.”
His address followed speeches from both Mr Albanese and Peter Dutton, leader of the opposition.
The prime minister told the King: “You have shown great respect for Australians even during times when we have debated the future of our own constitutional arrangements and the nature of our relationship with the crown. Nothing stands still.”
He added: “Australians have long felt that the warmth that your mother felt for this country is a warmth that thrives in your own heart.
“Your Majesties are very welcome here, and, on behalf of all Australians, we wish you an absolutely splendid stay.”
Sir Keir Starmer was later asked about the incident and said: “I think he’s doing a fantastic job, and we should remember in the context of health, that he is out there doing his public service notwithstanding the health challenges he himself has had. So I think he’s doing a great job.”
The King has long forged close relationships with Australian indigenous leaders.
He and the Queen had earlier been welcomed at Canberra Airport with a traditional smoking ceremony.
Aunty Serena Williams and Robert Palm officiated on behalf of the indigenous Ngunnawal community, urging the royal visitors to waft the smoke from burning eucalyptus over themselves. The plant was chosen for its health benefits in light of the King’s ongoing cancer treatment.
The King and Queen also attended events about preventing bushfires and domestic violence against women before paying tribute at a war memorial.
Among the many turning out to greet them was an alpaca called Hephner, who was dressed in a suit collar, gold bow tie and crown and sneezed after the King tickled his nose.
On Tuesday, the monarch will take part in another smoking ceremony and meet Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander community representatives at the National Centre of Indigenous Excellence.
He will later launch the King’s Foundation Australia, which will be based in a former governor’s residence in New South Wales and offer education and training programmes in traditional and heritage crafts.