During a press conference outside Queensland state parliament in Brisbane, Bob Katter, an independent MP for Kennedy, threw his support behind the anti-immigration March for Australia protests scheduled for the weekend. Katter, surrounded by members of Katter’s Australian Party, demanded the names of those attending recent pro-Palestine protests, advocating for their deportation. When presented with figures suggesting over 100,000 people attended a pro-Palestine rally in Sydney and 50,000 in Brisbane, Katter responded by saying, “If you have anti-Australian sentiments, then get the hell out of my country. The gloves are coming right off now.”
The interaction with journalists took a confrontational turn when Queensland reporter Josh Bavas commented on Katter’s Lebanese heritage. Katter responded aggressively, stating, “I punch blokes in the mouth for saying that,” and ordered Bavas not to mention it again. Katter went on to refuse to answer any further questions from Bavas, branding his inquiry as racist.
Katter’s stance on immigration is clear; he advocates for potential immigrants to uphold Australian values and traditions, particularly democracy, rule of law, Christianity, egalitarianism, and industrial awards. He remains ambiguous about a potential ban on immigration from Islamic countries. Despite Katter’s assertive declarations, organizers of the March for Australia have distanced themselves from any affiliations with neo-Nazi groups, despite such groups adopting the march as a cause.
Source: https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2025/aug/28/bob-katter-threatens-punch-nine-journalist-over-lebanese-heritage-comment
