Pauline Hanson

Pauline Hanson
In 2006
Member of the Australian Parliament for Oxley
In office 2 March 1996 – 3 October 1998
Preceded by	Les Scott
Succeeded by	Bernie Ripoll
Personal details
Born	(1954-05-27) 27 May 1954 Brisbane
Nationality	Australian
Political party	Liberal (1994–96) Independent (1996–97, 2003–07, 2010–2013) One Nation (1997–2003, 2013–present) Pauline's United Australia Party (2007–2010)
Spouse(s)	Walter Zagorski, Mark Hanson
Residence	Corlette, New South Wales
Profession	Businesswoman Politician

Pauline Lee Hanson (née Seccombe; born 27 May 1954^[1]) is an Australian politician and former leader of One Nation, a right-wing political party with a populist, conservative and anti-multiculturalism platform. In 2006, she was named by The Bulletin as one of the 100 most influential Australians of all time.^[2]

Hanson was a City of Ipswich councillor in the mid-1990s. Following her disendorsement as the Liberal Party candidate for the federal seat of Oxley for the March 1996 election, she was elected as the independent member in that election. Her profile increased dramatically later that year when she gave her maiden parliamentary speech in which she criticised immigration and multiculturalism, government assistance to Aboriginals and political correctness, and called for a return to high-tariff protectionism.

She co-founded One Nation in 1997, but lost her seat at the 1998 election and subsequently has made several unsuccessful attempts to be re-elected to both federal and state parliaments in Australia.

Pre-political career biography

Hanson was born in Brisbane in 1954.^[3] She was a small business proprietor from 1987 to 1996.^[3] Her grandfather was an immigrant from England in 1908. Her father owned a take-away fish and chip shop. Hanson left school at the age of fifteen after completing Year 10 and worked in a variety of unskilled clerical and service jobs. She accumulated several rental properties, becoming independently wealthy. Before entering politics, she herself owned a fish and chip shop in Ipswich, a city near Brisbane. Hanson has two sons, Tony Zagorski and Steven Hanson, to her first husband Walter Zagorski. She has a son, Adam, and a daughter, Lee, with her second husband, Mark Hanson.^[4]

Political background

Hanson was an independent local councillor in the City of Ipswich from 1994 until an early election due to administrative changes in 1995. Narrowly losing her seat, she joined the Liberal Party of Australia and was endorsed as the Liberal Party's candidate for the House of Representatives electorate of Oxley (based in Ipswich) for the March 1996 Federal election. Oxley had once been held by Bill Hayden, and at the time was thought of as a Labor stronghold. Hayden's successor, Les Scott, held it with a 12.6% two-party majority, making it the safest Labor seat in Queensland.

Leading up to the election, Hanson advocated the abolition of special government assistance for Aborigines, and she was disendorsed by the Liberal Party. Ballot papers had already been printed listing Hanson as the Liberal candidate, and the Australian Electoral Commission had closed nominations for the seat. As a result, Hanson was still listed as the Liberal candidate when votes were cast, even though Liberal leader John Howard had declared she would not be allowed to sit with the Liberals if elected.^[5] On election night, Hanson took a large lead on the first count and picked up enough Democrat preferences to defeat Scott on the sixth count. She ultimately won 54 percent of the two-candidate preferred vote. Had she still been running as a Liberal, the 19.3 percent swing would have been the largest two-party swing of the election.^[6] Due to her disendorsement, she entered parliament as an independent.^[7]

Maiden speech

On 10 September 1996, Hanson gave her maiden speech to the House of Representatives, which was widely reported in the media. In her opening lines, Hanson positioned herself "not as a polished politician but as a woman who has had her fair share of life's knocks", and with views based on "common sense, and my experience as a mother of four children, as a sole parent, and as a businesswoman running a fish and chip shop. I won the seat of Oxley largely on an issue that has resulted in me being called a racist. That issue related to my comment that Aboriginals received more benefits than non-Aboriginals". Hanson then asserted that "mainstream Australians" were subject to "a type of reverse racism ... by those who promote political correctness and those who control the various taxpayer funded 'industries' that flourish in our society servicing Aboriginals, multiculturalists and a host of other minority groups". This theme continued with the assertion that "present governments are encouraging separatism in Australia by providing opportunities, land, moneys and facilities available only to Aboriginals". Among a series of criticisms of Aboriginal land rights, access to welfare and reconciliation, Hanson criticised the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Commission, saying "Anyone with a criminal record can, and does, hold a position with ATSIC". There then followed a short series of statements on family breakdown, youth unemployment, international debt, the Family Law Act, child support, and the privatisation of Qantas and other national enterprises. The speech also included an attack on immigration and multiculturalism, a call for the return of high-tariff protectionism, and criticism of economic rationalism.^[8] Her speech was delivered uninterrupted by her fellow parliamentarians as it was the courtesy given to MPs delivering their maiden speeches.

After her speech, Hanson was, for a period of time, the subject of significant media and political attention. On 13 October 1996, asked by Tracey Curro on 60 Minutes if she was xenophobic, she replied, "please explain?".^[10] This response became a much-parodied catchphrase within Australian culture.

The reaction of the mainstream political parties was negative, with parliament passing a resolution (supported by all members except Graeme Campbell) condemning her views on immigration and multiculturalism. However, the Prime Minister at the time, John Howard initially refused to censure Hanson or speak critically about her, acknowledging that her views were shared by many Australians,^[11] commenting that he saw the expression of such views as evidence that the 'pall of political correctness' had been lifted in Australia, and that Australians could now "speak a little more freely and a little more openly about what they feel".^[12]

Hanson immediately labelled Howard as a "strong leader" and said Australians were now free to discuss issues without "fear of being branded as a bigot or racist". Over the next few months Hanson featured prominently on television and talkback radio, attracting popularist anti-immigration sentiment and the attention of the Citizens' Electoral Council, the League of Rights and other right-wing groups. Opinion polls suggested that up to two in three Australians thought immigration levels too high, and with popularist anti-immigration sentiment obtaining expression around Hanson. In the face of this political climate, the Immigration Minister announced a tougher government line on refugee applications, and cut the family reunion intake by 10,000 despite an election promise to maintain immigration levels.^[12] Various academic experts, business leaders and several state premiers attacked the justification offered by Immigration Minister Phillip Ruddock who had claimed that the reduction had been forced by continuing high unemployment. Ethnic communities complained that this attack on multiculturalism was a cynical response to polls showing Hanson's rising popularity. Hanson herself claimed credit for forcing the government's hand.^[13]

Hanson's views received negative coverage across Asian news media, and National Party Deputy and Trade Minister, Tim Fischer, criticised the race "debate" initiated by Hanson saying it was putting Australian exports and jobs at risk. In October other ministers and state and territory leaders followed Fischer's lead in attacking Hanson.^[12] In November, about 10,000 people marched in protest against racism in Melbourne, and other protests followed, while Anglican and Catholic church leaders warned that the "ill-conceived controversy" threatened the stability of Australia's multicultural society. Also repudiating Hanson's views on immigration and multiculturalism in 1996 were Victorian Premier Jeff Kennett, the Queensland National Senator Ron Boswell, Sir Ronald Wilson and former PM Paul Keating.^[14]

A poll in The Bulletin magazine at this time suggested that if Hanson formed a political party, it would win eighteen percent of the vote. Subsequently, after months of silence, Howard forwarded a bipartisan motion (along with Opposition Leader Kim Beazley) against racial discrimination and reaffirming support for a nondiscriminatory immigration policy. The motion was carried on the voices.^[12] Howard later said that Hanson was plainly wrong and was "an empty popularist offering a cure worse than the disease".^[13] Hanson did not relent in articulating her views and continued to address public meetings around Australia. The League of Rights offered financial and organisational support for her campaign against Asian immigration, and in December she announced she was considering forming a political party to contend the next election.^[12]

Race and immigration

Despite repeated denials of the racism charge by Hanson, the public discussion of whether or not her views were racist quickly became the topic of academic interest in Australia. For example, at the 1997 annual conference of the Australian and New Zealand Communications Association (ANZCA) at La Trobe University, a paper was presented with the title 'Phenomena and Epiphenomena: is Pauline Hanson racist?'.^[15] In 1998, Keith Suter argued that Hanson's views were better understood as an angry response to globalisation.^[16] By August 1998 perceptions in Asia of Hanson's popularity being related to racism were affecting international relations, and this prompted Alexander Downer, Minister for Foreign Affairs under John Howard to issue a media release calling on Pauline Hanson, David Oldfield and David Ettridge to "disassociate themselves from the racist slurs being promoted in the Asian media by people claiming to be their closest supporters".^[17] In 2000, the University of NSW Press published the book Race, Colour and Identity in Australia and New Zealand,^[18] which identified Hanson as a central figure in the 'racism debate' in Australia of the 1990s, noting that senior Australian academics such as Jon Stratton, Ghassan Hage and Andrew Jakubowicz had explored Hanson's significance in an international as well as national context.^[19]

In 2004, Hanson appeared on the nationally televised ABC interview show Enough Rope. Archival footage from a 60 Minutes program shot on the streets of Ipswich was used to introduce claims about racism and bigotry in Hanson's views. Hanson challenged interviewer Andrew Denton to show her things that she had said that were racist. Denton instead responded with an example of an abusive letter sent to an Asian girl after Hanson's speeches. The letter included a racist tirade "You are nothing but an ungrateful, treacherous, yellow slanty-eyed little Vietnamese whore. You have... We have had enough of your lot with their drug peddling and crime. So piss off now". Hanson was then challenged about derogatory comments about Aboriginals made by her "fellow travellers". Hanson distanced herself from the comments, by countering that several elected candidates of One Nation were "radicals that tagged themselves to me". She also stated that she had limited knowledge of her autobiography Pauline Nation's 'The Truth' and its contents.^[20]

In 2006, ten years after her maiden speech, its effects were still being discussed within a racism framework,^[21] as well as being included in resources funded by the Queensland Government on 'Combating racism in Queensland'.^[22] Also, in December 2006 The Age reported that Australian Greens leader, Senator Bob Brown had labelled Hanson a "bloodsucker" over her suggestion that Africans are bringing AIDS into Australia. She also said she was concerned by the ease with which people were able to gain Australian citizenship, especially Muslims and Africans. She also made claims that "You can't have schools not sing Christmas carols because it upsets others". Liberal Bruce Baird said Hanson had her facts wrong in her suggestions of immigrants bringing disease into Australia. He also said "Ms Hanson will never let the truth get in the way of a good story".^[23] In relation to African immigration, Hanson also said: "Do you want to see your daughter or a family member end up with AIDS or anyone for that matter?". In relation to this, the Federation of African Communities Council said that the group's lawyers were lodging a complaint of racial discrimination with the Australian Human Rights Commission.^[24] In 2007, Hanson publicly backed Kevin Andrews, then Minister for Immigration under John Howard, in his views about African migrants and crime.^[25]

In defence of her views, Hanson stated on the Australian talk show Beauty and the Beast that she is not in fact a racist nor a xenophobe, but rather wanted to maintain a balanced population of Australians and Asian immigrants.^[26]

One Nation

In April 1997, Hanson, her senior advisor David Oldfield, and professional fundraiser David Ettridge, founded the Pauline Hanson's One Nation political party.^{[citation needed]} Disenchanted rural voters attended her meetings in regional centres across Australia as she consolidated a support base for the new party. An opinion poll in May of that year indicated that the party was attracting the support of 9 per cent of Australian voters and that its popularity was at the expense of the Coalition's base.^[13]

In its late 1990s incarnation, One Nation called for zero net immigration, an end to multiculturalism and a revival of Australia's Anglo-Celtic cultural tradition which it says has been diminished, the abolition of native title and the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Commission (ATSIC), an end to special Aboriginal funding programs, opposition to Aboriginal reconciliation which the party says will create two nations, and a review of the 1967 constitutional referendum which gave the Commonwealth power to legislate for Aborigines. The party's economic position was to support protectionism and trade retaliation, increased restrictions on foreign capital and the flow of capital overseas, and a general reversal of globalisation's influence on the Australian economy. Domestically, One Nation opposed privatisation, competition policy, and the GST, while proposing a government subsidisied people's bank to provide 2 per cent loans to farmers, small business, and manufacturers. On foreign policy, One Nation called for a review of Australia's United Nations membership, a repudiation of Australia's UN treaties, an end to foreign aid and to ban foreigners from owning Australian land.^[27]

One Nation attracted nearly one-quarter of the vote in the 1998 Queensland state election and won 11 of 89 seats in the Legislative Assembly of Queensland.^[28] During this period, new right-wing parties emerged in most states, running on platforms which were equally anti-elitist but not as populist as One Nation.^{[citation needed]} Australia First, led by Graeme Campbell, built support in Newcastle and the southern suburbs of Sydney. The United Australia Party, led by Ellis Wayland, fielded candidates in the 1997 state election in South Australia; the Australian Reform Party, led by the gun lobbyist Ted Drane, was active in rural Victoria and New South Wales; The Australians, led by Tony Pitt, formed out of the defunct Confederate Action Party in Queensland; and Tasmania First fielded candidates in the 1998 state election.^[29]

"Death" video

In November 1997 Hanson, under suggestion from Oldfield, recorded a video which was to be screened to One Nation members and supporters in the event of her assassination, following claims that she and her daughter had received anonymous death threats.^[30][31] The 12-minute tape started off with the following message:

“	Fellow Australians, if you are seeing me now, it means I have been murdered. Do not let my passing distract you for even a moment	”

and then urged that

“	For the sake of our children and our children's children, you must fight on. Do not let my passing distract you for one moment. We must go forward together as Australians. Our country is at stake	”

Declining popularity

In 1999, The Australian reported that support for One Nation had fallen from 22% to 5%.^[32] One Nation Senate candidate Lenny Spencer blamed the press together with party director David Oldfield for the October 1998 election defeat,^[33] while the media reported the redirecting of preferences away from One Nation as the primary reason, with a lack of party unity, poor policy choices and an "inability to work with the media" also responsible.^[34]

Hanson lost her seat in Parliament after an electoral redistribution essentially split Oxley in half before the 1998 election. While Oxley was reconfigured as a marginal Labor seat, the bulk of her support was drawn into Blair, a new seat in the rural area surrounding Ipswich. Blair was drawn as a very safe Liberal seat with a notional majority of 18.7 percent. Hanson opted to contest Blair and won 36% of the primary vote,^[35] slightly over 10% more than her nearest rival. However, preferences were enough to elect the Liberal candidate, Cameron Thompson.^[35] Nationally, One Nation gained 8.99% of the Senate vote^[36] and 8.4% of the Representatives vote,^[35] but only one MP was elected – Len Harris as a Senator for Queensland. Heather Hill had originally been elected to this position, but the High Court of Australia ruled that, although she was an Australian citizen, she was ineligible for election to sit as a Senator since she had not renounced her British citizenship, which the Court assumed she possessed because she had been born in Britain.^[37] Hanson alleged in her 2007 autobiography Pauline Hanson: Untamed & Unashamed that a number of other politicians had dual citizenship yet this did not prevent them from holding positions in Parliament.

At the next Federal election on 10 November 2001, Hanson ran for a Queensland Senate seat but narrowly failed. She has accounted for her declining popularity by blaming Prime Minister John Howard for stealing her policies.^[38]

"It has been widely recognised by all, including the media, that John Howard sailed home on One Nation policies. In short, if we were not around, John Howard would not have made the decisions he did."^[38]

Other interrelated factors that have contributed to her downfall include her connection with a series of advisors (John Pasquarelli, David Ettridge and David Oldfield), all of whom she has fallen out with; disputes amongst her supporters and a lawsuit over the organisational structure of One Nation.

Hanson claimed in 2003 to have been vilified over campaign funding.^[39]

In 2003 she left Queensland, moved to Sylvania Waters, Sydney in New South Wales (NSW) and stood for the NSW Upper House in the 22 March State election. She lost narrowly to Shooters Party candidate John Tingle.

Hanson had also assisted Australian country musician Brian Letton in making a record with Tommy Tecko. In 2006, she commenced a new career selling real estate in Queensland.^[40]

She has been parodied and impersonated by drag queen Pauline Pantsdown, who sampled snippets from Hanson's speeches to create a song called "I'm a Backdoor Man". After Hanson successfully pursued legal action against Pantsdown, Pantsdown used the same technique to create the track "I Don't Like It", a 1998 Top 10 single in Australia.

After a civil suit in 1999 that reached the Queensland Court of Appeal in 2000, involving disgruntled former One Nation member Tony Sharples and a finding of fraud when registering One Nation as a political party,^[41] Hanson was facing bankruptcy. She made an appeal to supporters to give money to help her through her hard times. Shaun Nelson, formerly a One Nation member of the Queensland parliament, attacked Hanson: "She can afford to live on a $700,000 mansion just outside of Rosewood. The people up here that she's asking to give money to are pensioners and farmers that are doing it tough."^[42] Hanson, however, claimed she considered selling her home.

Fraud conviction and acquittal

On 20 August 2003, in a separate and this time criminal case, a jury in the District Court of Queensland convicted Hanson and Ettridge of electoral fraud. Both of them were sentenced to three years imprisonment for falsely claiming that 500 members of the 'Pauline Hanson Support Movement' were members of the political organisation 'Pauline Hanson's One Nation', in order to register that organisation in Queensland as a political party and apply for electoral funding. Because the registration was found to be unlawful, Hanson's receipt of electoral funding worth A$498,637 resulted in two further convictions for dishonestly obtaining property – each with three-year sentences, to run concurrently with the first. Hanson's initial reaction to the verdict was – "Rubbish, I'm not guilty. It's a joke."^[43]

Prime Minister John Howard said it was "a very long, unconditional sentence" and Bronwyn Bishop said Hanson was a political prisoner, comparing her conviction with Robert Mugabe's treatment of Zimbabwean opponents.^[44]

On 6 November 2003 (delivering judgment the day after hearing the appeal), the Queensland Court of Appeal quashed all of Hanson and Ettridge's convictions. Hanson and Ettridge were immediately released from jail.^[45] The Court's unanimous decision was that the evidence did not support a conclusion beyond reasonable doubt that the people on the list were not members of the 'Pauline Hanson's One Nation' party and that Hanson and Ettridge knew this when the application to register the party was submitted. Accordingly, the convictions regarding registration were quashed. The convictions regarding funding, which depended on the same facts, were also quashed. However, in order to reach this decision the court had to suppose that the three founding members of One Nation – Hanson, Ettridge and Oldfield – had misinterpreted the party's constitution when they had claimed, in earlier public statements, to be the only members of the party.^[46] Chief Justice Paul de Jersey, with whom the other two judges agreed overall, suggested that, if Hanson, Ettridge and especially the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions had used better lawyers from the start, the whole matter might not have taken so long, up to the appeal hearing, or even have been avoided altogether. Court of Appeal President Margaret McMurdo rebuked many politicians, including Prime Minister John Howard and Bronwyn Bishop MHR. Their observations, she said, demonstrated at least "a lack of understanding of the Rule of Law" and "an attempt to influence the judicial appellate process and to interfere with the independence of the judiciary for cynical political motives," although she praised other leading Coalition politicians for accepting the District Court's decision.^[47]

In 1998, Tony Abbott had established a trust fund called "Australians for Honest Politics Trust" to help bankroll civil court cases against the One Nation Party and its leader Pauline Hanson.^[48] Prime Minister John Howard denied any knowledge of existence of such a fund.^[49] Abbott was also accused of offering funds to One Nation dissident Terry Sharples to support his court battle against the party. However, Howard defended the honesty of Abbott in this matter.^[50] Abbott conceded that the political threat One Nation posed to the Howard Government was "a very big factor" in his decision to pursue the legal attack, but he also claimed to be acting "in Australia's national interest". Howard also defended Abbott's actions saying "It's the job of the Liberal Party to politically attack other parties – there's nothing wrong with that."^[51]

Returns to politics

In 2003 Hanson was an unsuccessful candidate for the NSW State Election, running for a seat in the Upper House. In January 2004, Hanson announced that she did not intend to return to politics.^[52] but then stood as an independent candidate for one of Queensland's seats in the Senate in the 2004 Australian federal election. She declared, "I don't want all the hangers on. I don't want the advisers and everyone else. I want it to be this time Pauline Hanson." She was ultimately unsuccessful, receiving only 31.77% of the required quota of primary votes,^[53] and did not pick up enough additional support through preferences. However, she attracted more votes than the One Nation party (4.54% compared to 3.14%)^[53] and, unlike her former party, recovered her deposit from the Australian Electoral Commission and secured $150,000 of public electoral funding.^[54]

On 24 May 2007 Hanson launched Pauline's United Australia Party.^[55] Under that banner, Hanson again contested one of Queensland's seats in the Senate in the 2007 Federal election, when she received over 4% of total votes.^[56] The party invokes the partial namesake of the historic United Australia Party.^[57] Speaking on her return to politics, she stated: "I have had all the major political parties attack me, been kicked out of my own party and ended up in prison, but I don't give up."^[58] In October 2007, Hanson launched her campaign song, entitled "Australian Way of Life.", which included the line: "Welcome everyone, no matter where you come from."^[59]

Hanson contested the electoral district of Beaudesert as an independent at the 2009 Queensland state election.^[60] After an election campaign dominated by discussion over hoax photographs, she was placed third behind the Liberal National Party's Aidan McLindon and Labor's Brett McCreadie. There were conflicting media reports as to whether she had said she would not consider running again.^[61][62]

On 15 February 2010, Hanson announced that she planned to deregister Pauline's United Australia Party, sell her Queensland house and move to the United Kingdom.^{[63][64][65][66]} The announcement was warmly welcomed by Nick Griffin, leader of the far-right British National Party (BNP).^[67]

On 23 July 2010, while at an event promoting her new career as a motivational speaker, Hanson expressed interest in returning to the political stage as a Liberal candidate if an invitation were to be offered by the leader Tony Abbott in the 2010 election.^[68] No such offer was forthcoming.

On 7 March 2013 Hanson announced that she intends to stand in the 2013 federal election.^[69] She has rejoined the One Nation party and will be a Senate candidate in New South Wales.^[70]

The "Rattnergate" scandal

In March 2011, Hanson ran as an independent candidate for the New South Wales Legislative Council in the 2011 state election,^[71] but was not elected, receiving 2.41% of the primary statewide vote but losing on preferences.^[72][73][74] Following the election, Hanson alleged that "dodgy staff" employed by the NSW Electoral Commission put 1200 votes for her in a pile of blank ballots, and she claimed that she had a forwarded NSW Electoral Commission internal email as evidence of this.^[75] Hanson then commenced legal proceedings to challenge the outcome of the election in the NSW Supreme Court, which sat as the Court of Disputed Returns.^[76] From the onset of proceedings, the NSW Electoral Commissioner maintained the view that Hanson's claims lacked substance.^[77] The man who alerted Hanson to the alleged emails, who identified himself as "Michael Rattner", failed to appear in court on 8 June 2011^[78] Initial information that Carson was arrested was later shown to be incorrect. "Michael Rattner" was revealed to be Sean Carson, a history teacher who posed as a journalist to obtain embargoed progressive poll results.^[79] Carson never admitted faking the email exchange between Electoral Commission staff, which was central to Hanson's claim that 1,200 votes for her were not counted.^[80] The name used by Carson in the emails, "Michael Rattner", was a direct reference to Mickey Mouse; and it was reported that the use of that particular name indicated that Carson was linked to an "anti-voter-fraud" organization led by Amy McGrath and Alasdair Webster.^[81] Carson apologised to the court and was granted protection from prosecution by Justice McClellan after initially refusing to answer questions on the grounds of "self-incrimination" before being compelled to answer questions relating to the fraudulent email.^[82] However, the judge ordered that Hanson's legal costs of more than $150,000 be paid by the State of NSW – a move which further outraged Greens Party MP, Jeremy Buckingham, who would have been replaced by Hanson had her challenge been successful. Raising the issue of whether Hanson's legal action should have gone ahead at all given the nature of the evidence, Buckingham stated that "This lack of judgment shows that she's unfit for public office."^[83]

Television appearances

In late 2004 during her election campaign, Hanson competed in the Australian reality TV show Dancing with the Stars on the Seven Network. In the show a number of Australian celebrities compete against one another in ballroom dancing. Hanson and her partner Salvatore Vecchio made it to the final, advancing due to audience support in SMS voting, but lost to former Home and Away star Bec Cartwright.

Hanson was part of the 2011 cast of The Celebrity Apprentice Australia. She was on the show until the second last challenge.

Autobiography and books published

• Not long after her election to Parliament, Pauline Hanson published and launched a book called The Truth. In this book there were claims of Aboriginal cannibalism. There was mention of Aboriginal women eating their babies and tribes cannibalising their members. Hanson had stated to the media that the reason for these claims of cannibalism was to "demonstrate the savagery of Aboriginal society". David Ettridge, the One Nation party director, explained that the book's claims were intended to correct 'misconceptions' about Aboriginal history. These 'misconceptions' were said to be relevant to Aboriginal welfare funds. He also said that "the suggestion that we should be feeling some concern for modern day Aborigines for suffering in the past is balanced a bit by the alternative view of whether you can feel sympathy for people who eat their babies".^[84] There were also claims that by 2050 Australia will have a president of Chinese-Indian background called Poona Li Hung and she would be part machine.^[85] In 2004, Hanson stated that the book was "written by some other people who actually put my name to it" and that while she held the copyright over The Truth, she was unaware that much of the material was being published under her name.^[86]

• In March 2007, Hanson published her autobiography Untamed and Unashamed.^[87][88]

References

Further reading

• Scott Balson (2000), Inside One Nation. The inside story on a people's party born to fail, Interactive Presentations, Mt Crosby News (Queensland), ISBN 0-9577415-2-9
• Helen J Dodd (1997), Pauline. The Hanson Phenomenon, Boolarong Press, Moorooka (Queensland), ISBN 0-646-33217-1
• David Ettridge (2004), Consider Your Verdict, New Holland Publishers, Frenchs Forest (New South Wales) ISBN 1-74110-232-4
• Bligh Grant (ed.) (1997), Pauline Hanson. One Nation and Australian Politics, University of New England Press, Armidale (NSW), ISBN 1-875821-38-4
• Pauline Hanson (2007), Untamed and Unashamed — Pauline Hanson's autobiography, Jo–Jo Publishing, Docklands (Victoria) ISBN 978-0-9802836-2-4
• James Jupp (1998), 'Populism in the land of Oz,' in Meanjin, Vol.57, No.4, pp. 740–747
• Margo Kingston (1999), Off the Rails. The Pauline Hanson Trip, Allen and Unwin, St Leonards (NSW) ISBN 1-86508-159-0
• Michael Leach, Geoffrey Stokes, Ian Ward (eds.) (2000), The Rise and Fall of One Nation, University of Queensland Press, St Lucia (Queensland) ISBN 0-7022-3136-3
• George J Merritt (1997), Pauline Hanson. The Truth, St George Publications, Parkholme (South Australia), ISBN 0-646-32012-2
• John Pasquarelli (1998), The Pauline Hanson Story by the Man Who Knows, New Holland Publishers, Frenchs Forest (NSW), ISBN 1-86436-341-X

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Pauline Hanson.

Wikiquote has a collection of quotations related to: Pauline Hanson

• Official website

Parliament of Australia
Preceded by Les Scott	Member for Oxley 1996–1998	Succeeded by Bernie Ripoll

Authority control VIAF: 92816054

Persondata
Name	Hanson, Pauline
Alternative names
Short description	Australian politician
Date of birth	1954-05-27
Place of birth	Brisbane, Australia
Date of death
Place of death