Western Australian senator Fatima Payman has resigned from the labour party after being exiled for Palestine but will continue to serve in the upper house as an independent, marking a significant split with the Albanese government over the Palestinian issue.
According to the reports of ABC, she confirmed that she’s leaving the party and will not be joining any muslim community linked party. She said she was “deeply torn” over the decision and continued to believe in the principles of the Labor Party, but felt she could see “no middle ground” that would allow her to remain in the party.
“With a heavy heart but a clear conscience, I announce my resignation from the Australian Labor Party. I have informed the prime minister that, effective immediately, I will sit on the crossbench to represent Western Australia,” she said.
“This has been the most difficult decision of my life and put me in a tough position and like I told the prime minister on multiple occasions and my colleagues that this is a matter I cannot compromise on. It is a matter of principle and when I voted across the floor, it was on conscience,” she added.
“On one hand, I have the immense support of the rank and file [Labor party] members, the unionists, the lifelong members, the party volunteers who are calling on me to hang in there and to make change happen internally,” she further added
I am pressured to conform to caucus solidarity and toe the party line.
“My conscience leaves me no choice,” she said
“I felt I exhausted every opportunity to raise my concerns, whether it was back in November of last year or more recently, and I felt there was no place for me to continue these conversations, and decisions were already made by the time it was brought to caucus,” she emphasized.
She further said that she has already inform the prime minister and his resignation will take immediate effect. This move comes after two weeks of perceived mistreatment over her stance her stance on the ongoing Israeli genocide in Gaza, which has resulted in the killing of nearly 38,000 Palestinians, primarily women and children.
Senator Payman will now sit on the crossbench, meaning the government will need an additional vote in the Senate in order to pass legislation if it is not supported by the opposition.
Elected in senate in 2002 for the six term representing western Australia, Senator Payman noted that there’s no rule against an elected senator leaving their party and remaining in senator. However, the Senator said that Payman was in the upper house only because she was an ALP candidate.
Meanwhile, Payman said she believes she can best serve her constituents as an independent senator. The announcement came on Tuesday after it was confirmed that Australian political strategist, Glenn Druery had been having “informal conversation” with Payman and Muslim community groups however,Druery said there was no contact involved.
