Indigenous leaders have raised concern over Lidia Thorpe's protest in the Parliament house great hall in Canberra. King Charles had just finished his speech when Senator Thorpe walked towards the stage yelling "you are not my king" and "give us a treaty".
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00:00My immediate reaction was not the time nor the place.
00:06And there are many other opportunities that you can access, particularly as a Senator.
00:11And I would have used the Senate or I would have made contact with the British High Commissioner
00:15to express my concerns so that they could be conveyed back to His Majesty, but not in
00:21a public forum like the Great Hall.
00:25I think it's inappropriate.
00:28Whilst Lydia may have points to make, there is also respect that has to be given, as we
00:34expect respect to be given to us.
00:37The matters she raised with the King are in fact matters that have to be addressed by
00:41the Australian Parliament.
00:43Things like a treaty belong to the Australian people, and they make the decision.
00:49Part of the problem with protests, as Senator Thorpe does, is that it alienates people more
00:56than draws them in.
00:57So the messages that she wants to get across aren't actually heard by the majority population.
01:03And they're the ones who make the decision, not our 4 per cent of the Aboriginal and Torres
01:08Strait Islander population, and we saw that in the referendum.