IN BRIEF
- The AFP received several complaints after Pauline Hanson said there were no "good" Muslims during an interview in February.
- Police have determined the One Nation leader's comments do not meet hate speech thresholds.
The Australian Federal Police (AFP) have determined that One Nation leader Pauline Hanson's comments that there are no "good" Muslims does not breach hate speech laws.
The Queensland senator made the remark during an interview with Sky News in February, which an AFP spokesperson said prompted "several complaints".
"You say, 'Well, there's good Muslims out there.' How can you tell me there are good Muslims?", Hanson asked Sharri Markson from Sky News.
Days later, the senator also took aim at the Western Sydney suburb of Lakemba — which is home to a large Muslim community — claiming that some people didn't feel they could go there.
News that makes sense
Your trusted source for staying up-to-date with the world around you. Get free daily news updates and analysis, straight to your inbox.
Hanson's comments were met with swift backlash across the political divide, as well as religious and civil groups.
In February, Australia's Race Discrimination Commissioner, Giridharan Sivaraman condemned the remarks as Islamophobic.
A partial apology
After the interview, Hanson refused to fully apologise.
She did seek to clarify that she believed there were "some" good Muslims, citing a non-practising Muslim woman who was a former One Nation candidate.
"If I've offended anyone out there that doesn't believe in Sharia law ... who believes in the caliphate and all the rest of it, then I apologise to you for my comment," Hanson said.
In late February, Hanson claimed police were trying to use new hate speech laws — which were legislated after the Bondi terror attack — to put her "back in jail". The laws allow the government to forcibly shut down extremist organisations, and aim to curb the influence of hate preachers.
The following month, Hanson was censured in the Senate over her comments about the Muslim community. The censure motion was passed 36 to 17, supported by Labor, the Greens, two Liberal senators and members of the crossbench.
At the time, Foreign Minister Penny Wong described Hanson's remarks as "inflammatory" and "divisive", which she claimed sought "to vilify Muslim Australians".
Matter 'finalised'
In a statement to SBS News, an AFP spokesperson said they had "determined the comments do not meet the threshold for relevant offences, including within the Combatting Antisemitism, Hate and Extremism (Criminal and Migration Laws) Act 2026."
"The AFP has finalised this matter."
The determination comes days after Hanson failed to overturn a court’s decision that she had racially discriminated Greens Senator Mehreen Faruqi, telling her in a social media post to “piss off back to Pakistan”.
Hanson said she has briefed lawyers to consider a High Court appeal.
For the latest from SBS News, download our app and subscribe to our newsletter.
