Australian Senator Pauline Hanson has been labelled racist after storming out of the Senate during the opening acknowledgement of the country.
On Wednesday Senate President Sue Lines acknowledged the Ngunnawal and Ngambri people as traditional custodians of the Canberra area and paid respect to elders past and present at the opening of the sitting.
Hanson, a controversial politician, interrupted the Senate president and yelled "No, I won't and I never will," before storming out of the chamber in a huff, Daily Mail Australia reported.
Later in the day, Hanson said in a Facebook post that she considers that the 'acknowledgement of country' perpetuates racial division in Australia.
"Let's acknowledge those people, men and women, who have lost their lives and sacrificed for our freedom and for our country. Not the indigenous, because as far as I am concerned I have as much right to this land as any Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander but they don't want to acknowledge that," Hanson said in a Facebook video.
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Hanson decided to kick up a fuss in the chamber as the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander flags will be displayed on the floor of Parliament.
She also said in the video she would refuse to acknowledge the flags as they have not been voted on by the Australian people.
"If they want the flag on the floor of Parliament then let the people make that decision in a vote."
Indigenous Green Party Senator Lidia Thorpe called out Hanson on Twitter, saying: "Pauline Hanson, you are ignorant and you are racist."
Hanson responded to Thorpe's tweet and said: "Says the 'infiltrator' who with her racially divisive agenda doesn’t even recognise the legitimacy of our Constitution or Parliament."
