Veteran Australian lawmaker Bob Katter sparked controversy on Thursday when he threatened a television journalist during a press conference on immigration in Brisbane.
Katter, the 80-year-old founder of Katter’s Australian Party, became visibly angry when a journalist mentioned his Lebanese heritage, interrupting with the words: “Don’t say that! Because that irritates me, and I’ve punched blokes in the mouth for saying that.”
He went on to claim that his family had been in Australia for 140 years and said he was “restraining” himself from physically assaulting the reporter, Josh Bavas of Channel Nine. Television footage showed Katter stepping toward Bavas, shaking his fist, and calling him a “racist.”
Bavas later issued a statement saying that in his nearly 20 years in journalism, he had never experienced such a reaction from an elected official. Fiona Dear, director of news and current affairs at Channel Nine’s parent company, condemned the threats as “unacceptable,” describing the racism allegation as “baseless and offensive,” and called for an apology.
Katter’s office did not comment on the incident, though his son Robbie Katter, also a state lawmaker present at the press conference, acknowledged reporters’ concerns, saying, “Point taken.”
Known for his eccentric views, Bob Katter is Australia’s longest-serving federal MP. In 2017, he went viral for dismissing questions on same-sex marriage by saying he had “no time” for the issue because “every three months, a person is torn to pieces by a crocodile in north Queensland.”
