Who Is Pauline Hanson? Australian Politician Wears Burka In Senate, Draws Criticism

Pauline Hanson, the leader of Australia's far-right One Nation party, drew sharp criticism from other senators after she entered the Senate on Thursday wearing a burka as part of an attempt to ban the garment in Australia.

Attorney-General George Brandis called Hanson's act a "stunt" and also "counseled and cautioned" her against causing offense to religious beliefs of different groups. Brandis received a standing ovation from opposition parties, reports said.

In the question answer session when Hanson focused on banning of the burka in Australia, Brandis replied saying the Islamic veil will not be banned.

Labor Sen. Penny Wong, the leader of the opposition in the Senate was also infuriated with Hanson's action. She said: “It is one thing to wear a religious dress as a sincere act of faith and another to wear it here as a stunt in the Senate chamber," according to reports.

Hanson, however, defended her appearance by saying what she did had “opened up debate”. She told radio 2GB that she had put the burka on in her office and she was not stopped by security as parliamentary attendant had been informed about it in advance.

Hanson had perceived of the burka idea months back and told the radio that Brandis' admonishment of her reflected the politicians' non-serious nature of the burka ban, according to the Australian.

“What I have done today is an open up debate, and what Senator Brandis did today was just shut it down,” Hanson said.

There have been several Twitter reactions to Hanson's burka wearing stunt in the parliament.

Hanson's party has been fighting to ban the burka for a long time. In January, she told Sky News about her promise of banning burka from all government buildings if her party won the Queensland state election.

"We are going to lead the way in Queensland, no driver's licenses wearing the burqa or anything like that," she said at the time.

Hanson has been adamant on her push to ban burqa from public places since her return to Canberra after last year's double dissolution election, the report said.

Hanson is known for her controversial views on racism, immigration, and xenophobia. Her maiden speech to the House of Representatives dealt with these issues and it had also garnered wide attention. Later, her comment on Africans transmitting AIDS to Australia forced her own party members to distance away from her, according to her biography.

Born into a poor family, Hanson had a troubled childhood. She often ran away from home in search of a better style. By the age of 21, she was divorced with two children to look after. She settled in Ipswich, England, and ran a petty shop selling fish and chips for a living. Later, she turned her focus to politics.

She was one of the founding members of the One Nation party in 1997 and was ousted from the party in 2002 for fraud allegations.