A racist flyer about Anne Aly has been circulated in Cowan.
Camera IconA racist flyer about Anne Aly has been circulated in Cowan. Credit: Supplied/Supplied

Cowan MP Anne Aly attacked in ‘racist’ flyers

Jon Bassett with AAPWanneroo Times

FLYERS attacking Anne Aly have been distributed in the West Australian Labor MP’s electorate.

The flyers refer to Dr Aly by her full Egyptian given name and says she supports banning any criticism of Islam “just like Saudi Arabia”.

Whoever distributed the anonymous, potentially slandering flyers about Ms Aly, who is a counter-terrorism expert, faces a $25,000 fine.

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“The penalty for distributing an unauthorised electoral communication is up to $25,200 for an individual,” an Australian Electoral Commission spokesman told communitynews.com.au.

There was no name on the flyers, which contravenes section 321D of the Electoral Act.

The AEC spokesman said it was aware of the flyer, but it had still not got an official complaint to investigate.

One Nation leader Pauline Hanson, who is in Perth, said her party had nothing to do with it but rejected descriptions of the material as racist.

“That word is just thrown around too easily these days. You can’t have an opinion or say anything without being called racist,” Senator Hanson told ABC radio on Tuesday.

She said it was a personal attack on Dr Aly and she didn’t agree with it.

“We don’t fight in the gutter. It’s not my way or my candidates’ (way),” she said.

Senator Hanson confronted Dr Aly on Monday during a chance encounter in Cowan, which the counter-terrorism expert holds with a margin of 0.7 per cent, complaining about her speaking to a journalist about a private lunch they had three years ago.

Dr Aly appeared surprised, asking Senator Hanson why she was bringing it up now.

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Camera IconImage Credit: Supplied/Supplied