Labor senator Fatima Payman faces expulsion from the party after siding with the Greens in a failed parliamentary push to recognise Palestinian statehood.
Labor rules bind caucus members to the party’s collective decisions and MPs who vote against those risk being thrown out.
The moment Senator Fatima Payman (in grey) crossed the floor.Credit: Alex Ellinghausen
The Greens rejected an amended version of the motion that couched Labor’s support “as a part of a peace process in support of a two-state solution”, with party leader Adam Bandt accusing the government of a “cowardly delay tactic” in fulfilling its intention to recognise a Palestinian state.
“Labor wants to water down this simple motion so it no longer immediately recognises Palestine,” Bandt said in a statement ahead of the vote.
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Meanwhile, the Coalition doomed the prospect of any motion succeeding by putting forward its own lengthy criteria involving security guarantees, the eradication of Hamas, and the reform of the Palestinian Authority governing the West Bank.
Payman, who has been outspoken over the conflict, stepped down from two parliamentary foreign affairs committees after Prime Minister Anthony Albanese rebuked her for using the controversial phrase “from the river to the sea, Palestine will be free”. She has also accused Israel of genocide in Gaza.
Jewish groups regard the “from the river to the sea” slogan as a coded call for the elimination of Israel, while others have insisted it is simply a call for freedom and equal rights for Palestinians.
In an opinion piece for Al Jazeera last week, Payman called on the Albanese government to recognise a Palestinian state, arguing the move would help bring to an end the bloody, months-long conflict on the Gaza strip.
Senator Fatima Payman (in back, in grey) sits at the back of the chamber during a division on amendments to a motion to recognise the State of Palestine.Credit: Alex Ellinghausen
In a direct challenge to Anthony Albanese, Payman said that “in opposition, our prime minister and the Labor Party were fierce champions of Palestine and passionate voices for justice. I ask that we summon that spirit of old and do the same in power”.
Following a series of divisions over Labor and Coalition amendments, the Senate then voted on the original Greens motion, with Payman accompanying independent senator David Pocock to sit with the Greens.