Senator Fraser Anning is egged in Melbourne. Photo / Supplied
Senator Fraser Anning has been involved in an ugly altercation with a teenager at a speaking event in Melbourne.
The man who was yesterday roundly criticised for his comments on the Christchurch massacre was egged at an organised event where protestors and supporters of the controversial identity clashed in wild scenes.
Senator Anning was being interviewed by a Melbourne newspaper reporter at Moorabin when a teenager broke a raw egg over the back of his head.
Someone has just slapped an egg on the back of Australian Senator Fraser Anning's head, who immediately turned around and punched him in the face. @politicsabc @abcnews pic.twitter.com/HkDZe2rn0X
— Henry Belot (@Henry_Belot) March 16, 2019
A shocked Senator Anning turned towards the teenager and slapped at him with an open hand in the face. He lashed out at the teen a second time as the pair were separated.
The teen was held down and questioned by officials before being led away by police. He was later released without charge pending further investigations.
After the teen was hauled away, a supporter to the senator the "younger generation" was "taking up the fight".
Senator Anning responded: "Well he's obviously a little on the crazy side, but yeah."
Far-right activist Neil Erikson was involved in tackling the teen to the ground, according to The Age. He shouted at organisers to remove the protestor and to remove reporters.
"Get the journalist out of here ... If you don't like, get out," he said.
A tweet shared by ABC journalist Paul Barry showed the teen being carried away. A supporter of Senator Anning held the boy in a tight headlock and told him: "You are nothing but a weak human f***ing being."
This is what Fraser Anning’s right-wing lads did to the boy. #auspol #FraserAnning pic.twitter.com/sJNzRLppG5
— Paul Barry (@TheRealPBarry) March 16, 2019
Barry went on to say Senator Anning can "resign from parliament as soon as he cleans (the egg) off".
The clash followed a scathing response to Senator Anning's press release in which he appeared to deflect responsibility for Friday's attack from the gunmen to New Zealand's immigration program.
Prime Minister Scott Morrison slammed the Queensland senator's comments, as did both sides of politics and the mainstream media.
Piers Morgan wrote: "Are you f***ing kidding me? This guy is an Australian senator? SHAME on you @fraser_anning.
"I hope your fellow Australians respond to this disgusting statement with the same blind fury I am feeling."
News.com.au political reporter Sam Clench wrote: "The Australian senator currently spewing racist garbage in response to the New Zealand mosque attack got 19 votes at the last election. Nineteen. Maybe we need to rethink our electoral system."
UPDATE: A teenage boy has egged controversial Senator Fraser Anning, midway through a press conference at his Melbourne appearance... the Senator responded by hitting him in the head.. and the boy was then tackled to the ground and held before police arrived. @7NewsMelbourne
— Kristy Mayr (@KristyMayr7) March 16, 2019
After the 17-year-old boy who egged Anning was violently gang-tackled to the ground by 5-6 men including Neil Erikson, @10NewsFirstMelb reporter and I asked the men to stop digging their knees and elbows into the boy and let him up after he was clearly restrained @theage
— Paul Sakkal (@paulsakkal) March 16, 2019
In his comments on the parliamentary letterhead on Friday, Senator Anning lashed out at New Zealand for the way it handled immigration.
"I am utterly opposed to any form of violence within our community, and I totally condemn
the actions of the gunman," Senator Anning said in his statement.
"However, while this kind of violent vigilantism can never be justified, what it highlights is the growing fear within our community, both in Australia and New Zealand, of the increasing Muslim presence.
"As always, left-wing politicians and the media will rush to claim that the causes of today's shootings lie with gun laws or those who hold nationalist views but this is all clichéd nonsense.
"The real cause of bloodshed on New Zealand streets today is the immigration program which allowed Muslim fanatics to migrate to New Zealand in the first place."
Senator Anning went on to say that while Muslims may have been victims of attacks, he claimed they were also perpetrators. and blamed deaths on "the entire religion of Islam". "It is the religious equivalent of fascism," he said.
He ended with a passage from the bible and said those who followed a violent religion that called on them to murder "cannot be too surprised when someone takes them at their word and responds in kind".
While evidence of him sharing that statement has been removed from his social media counts he tweeted:
Does anyone still dispute the link between Muslim immigration and violence?
— Fraser Anning Official (@fraser_anning) March 15, 2019
A media adviser for Senator Anning told news.com.au yesterday there had been no backlash to the statement, but it only took minutes for social media to blow up in outrage.
Among the criticism was a rebuke by Prime Minister Scott Morrison, who described the statement as "disgusting".
"I want to absolutely and completely denounce the statements made from Senator Anning
in all of the comments that he has made in his conflation of this horrendous terror attack with issues on immigration and Islamic faith," Mr Morrison said in a press conference on Saturday.
"These comments are appalling and ugly and have no place in Australia and he should be frankly ashamed of himself.
"It's not somerthing my government assosicates with or any one would seek to associate with."
Mr Morrison said the government will lead a motion of censure against Senator Anning in parliament.
"Parliament, I'm sure, will express a very clear view about what he's had to say," Mr Morrison said.
New Zealand, like Australia, is home to people from all faiths, cultures and backgrounds. There is absolutely no place in either of our countries for the hatred and intolerance that has bred this extremist, terrorist violence and we condemn it.
— Scott Morrison (@ScottMorrisonMP) March 15, 2019
Are you f*cking kidding me???? This guy is an Australian senator? SHAME on you @fraser_anning.
— Piers Morgan (@piersmorgan) March 15, 2019
I hope your fellow Australians respond to this disgusting statement with the same blind fury I am feeling. pic.twitter.com/W2XuX3fWkZ
"The remarks by Senator Fraser Anning blaming the murderous attacks by a violent, right-wing, extremist terrorist in New Zealand on immigration are disgusting.
"Those views have no place in Australia, let alone the Australian Parliament."
Labor Opposition Leader Bill Shorten also slammed the "obscure" Senator.
"While families in Christchurch mourn for loved ones they've lost, an obscure Australian Senator saw this act of terrorism and tragedy as an opportunity to blame the murder victims," Mr Shorten said.
"He deserves the contempt and condemnation of decent people everywhere. He does not speak for our parliament or our country."
On Sky News, political journalist Kieran Gilbert said someone with those views did not belong in parliament.
"I find him absolutely disgraceful," Gilbert said. "It's disgusting."
Fraser Anning so desperate for publicity he exploits a moment of deep trauma to raise his hate. Disgusting #auspol
— PatriciaKarvelas (@PatsKarvelas) March 15, 2019
I'm not going to repeat what Fraser Anning put out except to say that I cannot conceive how his puny, impoverished, bitter, nasty wormhead works.
— Tory Shepherd (@ToryShepherd) March 15, 2019
Many chose not to share the statement at all.
"No, but we do see the link between certain senators and violence," wrote one man on Twitter.
"Please don't do this today. Show some dignity and compassion. You might find you like it."
Another wrote: "Fraser Anning is a bad person in his heart. Just a nasty, ugly waste of human life."
Queenslanders said they were "disgusted" the politician represented their state.
"You are just appalling," wrote another.
Others who supported his sentiment were also slammed.
Fraser Anning should be expelled from the Senate forthwith. No ifs no buts. A disgrace to the country.
— Antfarmer (@antfarmer) March 15, 2019
Never has our democracy been so debased as it is by the presence of that piece of human garbage Fraser Anning in our Senate. What he’s tweeted in the last fifteen minutes is almost beyond belief
— Martin Pakula (@MartinPakulaMP) March 15, 2019
Following the backlash, Senator Anning has continued to defend his comments.
In another tweet he doubled down saying Friday was not an "excuse" to forget lives lost to "Islamic terrorist attacks".
And the worse person on the internet award goes to… https://t.co/WWSY65HsHY
— Dee Madigan (@deemadigan) March 15, 2019
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