Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison has called comments by a senator blaming the Christchurch terror attacks on New Zealand’s immigration policy “disgusting”. Queensland’s right wing senator Fraser Anning posted to Twitter just hours after the attacks asking: “Does anyone still dispute the link between Muslim immigration and violence?” The response was fierce and negative including a tweet from Morrison.
“The remarks by Senator Fraser Anning blaming the murderous attacks by a violent, right-wing, extremist terrorist in New Zealand on immigration are disgusting. Those views have no place in Australia, let alone the Australian Parliament.”
At least 49 people at two Christchurch mosques were killed in a terror attack. One man in his late 20s, believed to be a 28-year-old Australian who identified himself as Brenton Tarrant, has been charged with murder, while two other men and one woman remain in custody.
After sending the tweet, the right-wing senator was forced to release a statement stating he was “utterly opposed to any form of violence”, but doubled down on his victim blaming.
“As always, left wing politicians and the media will rush to claim the causes of today’s shootings lie with gun laws or those who hold nationalist views, but this is all cliched nonsense,” Anning wrote. “The real cause of bloodshed on New Zealand’s streets today is the immigration program which allowed Muslin fanatics to migrate to New Zealand in the first place.”