Australian Senator Lidia Thorpe was taken from Parliament House's Great Hall on Monday after interrupting King Charles III and Queen Camilla's reception event.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese was greeting the monarchs on the second day of their royal visit to Australia when Senator Thorpe shouted, "You are not our king, you are not our sovereign."

Thorpe accused the British king of "genocide against out people," adding, "give us our land back. Give us what you stole from us. Our bones, our skulls, our babies, our people. You destroyed our land."

She demanded the King "give us a treaty," before reiterating, "This is not your land. You are not my king. You are not our king."

Senator Thorpe was quickly removed from the Great Hall before the proceedings resumed, and reports say she turned her back during the playing of the British national anthem, "God Save the King."

A longstanding critic of the monarchy's influence in Australia, Senator Thorpe made a statement when she was sworn into the Senate in 2022 as a representative of the Greens. She raised her fist in the air and modified the oath to refer to the late Queen Elizabeth II as a colonizer.

“I sovereign, Lidia Thorpe, do solemnly and sincerely swear that I will be faithful and I bear true allegiance to the colonising her majesty Queen Elizabeth II,” Thorpe boldly stated.

Sue Lines, the Labor Senate President, reminded Senator Thorpe that she was required to recite the oath and emphasized that she would not be able to become a senator “if you don’t do it properly.”

During his address at the Great Hall today, King Charles III acknowledged Australia’s First Peoples and claimed they have honored him by sharing their stories and culture with him. 

“I can only say how much my own experience has been shaped and strengthened by such traditional wisdom," he asserted.

King Charles and Camilla are currently on the second day of their Australian tour. Over the past two days, many Indigenous activists, including Senator Thorpe, protested the tour.

Related News

UK-made F-35 parts linked to Gaza al-Mawasi tent massacre one year ago

Amnesty slams UK for abusing laws to silence pro-Palestine protests

After the reception at Parliament House, the Queen met with prominent domestic violence advocates in Canberra, since her work in the UK focuses on advocating against domestic violence.

However, Kerry Staines, CEO of the National Family Violence Prevention and Legal Services Forum, expressed disappointment that her organization—the “only First Nations people body specializing in family violence”—was not invited to meet the Queen.

Staines told ABC that she was unsure who attended or what was discussed but "would have liked First Nations representatives to be able to talk about the national crisis unfolding.”

King Charles not to stand in way if Australia wants to become republic

King Charles III has stated that he will not object to Australia's decision to replace him as the country's head of state, according to reports. 

According to the Daily Mail, the monarch is taking an "anti-confrontational approach" to Australian republican protesters in preparation for his visit later this month.

In answer to the Australian Republican Movement's (ARM) request for a meeting with the monarch, the King's assistant private secretary is said to have expressed "deep love and affection" for Australia.

The ARM claims to be "the peak body advocating on behalf of the Australian people for an Australian republic with an Australian as our head of state."

In 1999, Australia conducted a referendum on establishing a republic, with 54.9% voting against.

The Prime Minister, Anthony Albanese, has previously stated that "Australia should have an Australian as our head of state" but has subsequently suggested that a second referendum is not a priority.

Graham Smith, the president of the British campaign group Republic, who is currently in Australia to oppose the monarchy during the King's visit, said the predominant attitude toward the trip was one of "indifference and disinterest."

He described that when speaking to many friends and campaigners in the country recently, many were not even aware of the visit. 

Smith added that he is present to support the UK campaign, to challenge how Charles can represent the UK, and to question the purpose of his brief visit, which comes "at great expense to Australian and British taxpayers."

“I’m also here to say to Australians this isn’t an institution that deserves respect or deference, and that they shouldn’t believe for a moment that the UK is a nation of royalists. I’m hoping the visit will help influence the debate in both countries and highlight the irrelevance of the monarchy.”