Senator Lidia Thorpe shares beheaded King Charles cartoon on Instagram after monarchy heckle
Indigenous politician shouted at the King in a fiery speech as he visited the Australian parliament
Your support helps us to tell the story
This election is still a dead heat, according to most polls. In a fight with such wafer-thin margins, we need reporters on the ground talking to the people Trump and Harris are courting. Your support allows us to keep sending journalists to the story.
The Independent is trusted by 27 million Americans from across the entire political spectrum every month. Unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock you out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. But quality journalism must still be paid for.
Help us keep bring these critical stories to light. Your support makes all the difference.
An Australian senator who confronted King Charles in parliament has shared a cartoon showing the monarch beheaded on social media.
Lidia Thorpe, 51, an outspoken advocate for Indigenous rights, shouted at the King in a fiery address during his royal reception in Great Hall of Parliament House on Monday.
She approached the stage shouting “you are not my king” and accusing the King of “committing genocide against our people”, as she urged him to negotiate treaty between Australia‘s First Nations and its government.
After her protest, the independent politician took to social media to further reiterate her position, sharing a cartoon showing a beheaded King Charles to her Instagram story.
The original post, shared by artist Matt Chun, was captioned with Thorpe’s words she directed at the King earlier on Monday: “You are not our king. You are not sovereign.”
It also featured a video of her confrontation with the King in Canberra, in which she said: “This is not your country.”
You committed genocide against our people. Give us our land back. Give us what you stole from us – our bones, our skulls, our babies, our people,” she added.
“You are not our king, you are not sovereign... You destroyed our land.”
She was eventually stopped from approaching the King, who spoke quietly to Mr Albanese on the podium but otherwise appeared unfazed. Ms Thorpe was then escorted out of the chamber and she left yelling: “F*** the colony.”
Ms Thorpe, an Indigenous woman from Victoria, has long advocated for a treaty between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal Australians to recognise their autonomy and set right historical wrongs.
She later explained her comments as she told Sky News: “There’s thousands of massacre sites in this country from invasion and someone needs to answer for it. He is the successor then he needs to answer.”
She went on to say: “We are the real sovereigns in the country. The King is not our sovereign. The King lives in your country [the UK]. He’s from your country he can’t be our King.
“I have the support of Aboriginal people around this country. I have the support from my grandmother, I have the support from elders around the country.”
She also claimed that the “bones and skulls” of Aboriginal people are still in possession of the royal family: “We have our bones and our skulls still in his possession, or in his family’s possession. We want that back.
“We want our land back and we want your King to take some leadership and sit at the table and discuss a treaty with us.”
The King and Queen have faced several low-ley protests during their trip to the former British colony where the King still serves as head of state. Australia remains the only Commonwealth country without a treaty with its Indigenous people.
Demonstrators have displayed banners with the word “decolonise” at several events since the royal couple arrived on Friday.
It is understood the King was unruffled and did not let the outburst overshadow what the royal party viewed as a positive day in the Australian capital.
The royal couple were earlier welcomed at Canberra airport with a traditional smoking ceremony where guests wafted burning eucalyptus over themselves, chosen for its health benefits in light of the King’s ongoing cancer treatment.
They commemorated Australia’s war dead at the national memorial, laying floral tributes as hundreds of well-wishers turned out to see the couple – including an alpaca who sneezed in front of the King.
Subscribe to Independent Premium to bookmark this article
Want to bookmark your favourite articles and stories to read or reference later? Start your Independent Premium subscription today.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments