Opposition leader Peter Dutton has been asked if he is a “heartless racist” after claiming Palestinians fleeing Gaza should not be allowed into Australia.
Mr Dutton demanded that all visa applications from Gaza be rejected, saying people fleeing the war could pose a threat to Australia’s national security.
Coalition MPs wrote to Tony Burke on Tuesday calling on the newly appointed Home Secretary to tighten visa controls for applicants from Gaza to ensure they do not sustain any rhetorical support for the Palestinian militant group Hamas.
However, Mr Dutton remained adamant that no one from Gaza should enter Australia at this time, while speaking on Sky News.
“I don’t think people should be going through that war zone right now,” he said.
“It puts our national security at risk.”
Mr Dutton was questioned about the call on Today and asked if he was a “heartless racist” and had “any humanity left”.
“We have to make decisions and they may be difficult decisions, but they are decisions that benefit our country,” Dutton said.
Opposition leader Peter Dutton (pictured) was asked if he was a “heartless racist” after doubling down on demands to deny entry to migrants from Gaza.
He said the Albanian government had brought people back from a war zone without conducting face-to-face interviews in some cases.
“This is unprecedented; 1,300 people have come here on tourist visas. Again, this is unprecedented,” he said.
“I think this is a major recent mistake by the Albanian government and it puts our country at risk.”
He also claimed on Wednesday that Prime Minister Anthony Albanese “misled parliament” or “simply had no idea what he was talking about” by saying the same process applies when getting people out of Gaza as when Australia brought people in from Syria.
“That’s not true. Twelve months after we made that decision, I was still being criticized for not bringing people here quickly enough,” he said.
Dutton said face-to-face interviews were conducted in northern Iraq along with biometric testing.
“The government has done nothing of the sort,” he said.
“I’m sure the vast majority of these people are simply innocent people fleeing a war zone, but the best interest of our country is served when we know who is coming here and when we have a proper process in place to screen out those who are sympathetic to a designated terrorist organization.”
Dutton said the government should freeze immigration to Gaza amid claims that people fleeing the war could be linked to Hamas (pictured: displaced Palestinians in the Gaza Strip)
Asked if he wanted to stop “all refugees” from entering the country, Dutton said: “We should stop people coming in from a war zone.”
‘We don’t know if the proper controls have not been carried out… You bring 3,000 people, let’s say 99 percent are fine.
“If 1 percent of people are questionable or sympathetic to a designated terrorist organization, how can that be beneficial to our country?”
He added that his “job is to protect all Australians”.
“I don’t discriminate against anyone. I’m glad to see that they bring people from the Middle East if they have passed the proper checks,” he said.
“We make decisions that are in the best interest of our country. That is not what Anthony Albanese has done.”
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese (pictured) said Dutton was “always looking to divide” and his comments went against the advice of ASIO’s director-general and security agencies.
Senator Jane Hume said there should be a “temporary pause” on visas when asked if she supported Dutton’s call while speaking to the ABC on Wednesday morning.
“If we cannot carry out security checks to ensure that those fleeing Gaza are not Hamas supporters, then we will have to temporarily pause until we can be sure of that. We must do this to keep Australians safe,” he said.
Mr Albanese previously told ABC TV that Mr Dutton was “always looking to divide”.
“We take advice from the director-general of ASIO and the security agencies, not from someone who is always looking for a fight,” he said.
NDIS Minister Bill Shorten told Radio National he did not share Dutton’s view on Wednesday.
“I think if you are somehow confusing the idea that every person living in Gaza is a member of Hamas, I don’t share that view,” he said.
-He hasn’t said it, but he says there is a risk.
‘We currently have a process where ASIO checks people, where we do national security checks and, note to Peter Dutton, we are using the same process that he used.
“So if you think our current process is not good, what are you saying about the entire time you were in charge?”