Estranged Labor Senator Fatima Payman has penned an open letter detailing her position after being suspended from the Labor Party caucus.
Ms. Payman’s conduct within the party was called into question last week after she crossed the floor to vote with the Greens on recognising a Palestinian state.
The Western Australian senator faced scrutiny from party members including Foreign Minister Penny Wong who said Ms. Payman should have voted alongside Labor.
The last time a Labor member crossed the floor was in 2015.
On July 1, Ms. Payman posted an open letter to social media in which she addressed her position within the party.
“Yesterday, the prime minister suspended me indefinitely from the Australian Labor Party caucus,” she said in the statement.
“Since then, I have lost all my contact with my caucus colleagues. I have been removed from caucus meetings, committees, internal group chats, and whips bulletins,” she claimed.
“I have been told to avoid all chamber duties that require a vote, including divisions, motions and matters of public interest. I have been exiled.”
Ms. Payman went on to state she believed some Labor members were working on pushing her to resign.
“These actions lead me to believe that some members are attempting to intimidate me into resigning from the senate,” she said.
“As a result, I will abstain from voting on Senate matters for the remainder of the week, unless a matter of conscious arises where I'll uphold the true values and principles of the Labor Party.
Payman’s Actions Do Not Align With Labor: PM
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese told Parliament the temperature needed to be “taken down” in the debate around Ms. Payman, and not inflamed.When asked by member for Bradfield Paul Fletcher how he would handle Ms. Payman’s actions and her support of the chant, “From the river to the sea.”
The slogan is widely known as the catch call of the pro-Palestinian movement and is considered anti-semitic because it implies the destruction of Israel.
Yet the prime minister said it was used by both sides of the Israel-Palestine debate.
“From the river to the sea is a statement that has been used by both supporters of Israel and supporters of Palestine who support a single state,” Mr. Albanese said. “It’s just a fact.”
The leader went on to say the government supported a two-state solution and a peaceful resolution to the Israel-Hamas war.
But Mr. Albanese said it was out of line for Ms. Payman to cross the floor.
“By her own actions, Senator Payman has placed herself outside the privilege that comes with participating in the federal parliamentary Labor Party caucus and I informed her of that yesterday,” he said.
