Afghan-born Australian former Labor Party senator Fatima Payman, who was born in Kabul and migrated to Perth in 2003, recently made headlines after being suspended from the Labor Party caucus. Payman defied the parliamentary position on Palestine’s recognition, leading to her suspension. This decision impacted the political landscape, and on July 4, she officially resigned from the Labor Party. “This is a matter I cannot compromise on,” Payman said. She also emphasized that she was “deeply torn over the decision.”
Fatima’s political career began in 2018 when she joined Young Labor WA and the United Workers Union as an organizer. Moreover, she also served as the program coordinator at the Edmund Rice Centre Perth and worked as an electorate officer for Chinese-Australian lawyer and politician Pierre Yang. At the 2022 Australian Federal Election, she was elected as a Senator for WA. Throughout her time as a senator, she made efforts to involve people from diverse backgrounds in politics and improve early childcare services. In 2022, Payman won the Australian Muslim Role Model of the Year award.
Before she was suspended and left the Labor Party, she spoke out heavily about the atrocities occurring in Palestine. She also broke ranks in a formal vote to support a Greens proposal for the recognition of a Palestinian state. Payman threatened to do it again before being suspended from the Labor Party by Prime Minister Anthony Albanese. Reasons for Payman’s suspension include her commitment to crossing the floor in the Senate for a second time to support the recognition of Palestine. “By her own actions and statements, Senator Payman has placed herself outside the privilege that comes with participating in the federal parliamentary Labor Party caucus,” a government spokesperson said.
Moreover, several politicians reacted to Payman’s suspension. Finance Minister Katy Gallagher emphasized Payman’s behavior as “frustrating.” “By her own admission, she said that she’s, you know, spent some time talking to political strategists about what it looks like being an independent senator. And that happened before these sitting weeks. So, I think there has been a fair bit of thought put into her decision here and the way she’s rolled that decision out.”
Bill Shorten mentioned that he was “sad and disappointed.” “She feels strongly about Palestine. We all want to see the tanks out of Gaza. We all want the violence to stop. I want the hostages back. It’s not the issue. She didn’t want to agree with the rules that she’d signed up to. The prime minister gave her time and space. She’s walked.”
Despite leaving the Labor Party, Payman received support from Greens leader Adam Bandt, who praised her and tweeted “Courage” next to a photo of Payman. Independent senator Lidia Thorpe also praised Payman on social media, emphasizing that she had the “deepest respect” for Payman, and mentioned Payman’s actions as “a powerful and courageous move.” “You’re on the right side of history, Senator, and you’ll be a welcome addition to the crossbench. We need more strong young independent women in our parliament like you,” Thorpe tweeted.
Community leaders like Tetyana Sukkar from the Islamic Women’s Association emphasized that Payman’s inability to vote on motions with her conscience, without punishment from her party, has encouraged her to exercise her own right to vote in the upcoming federal election. Sukkar also mentioned that she voted for Labor in the past but going forward she won’t. “We need to do something, put our foot down, and stand up for those that are in need right now,” Sukkar said.
Moreover, ALP Member Yusra Metwally and a member of the Labor Friends of Palestine Group said it’s “unfair” to see Payman being “bullied” by her Labor colleagues. “Every woman from a multicultural background is looking at how Fatima Payman is being treated, given that diversity should never just be about token representation, but actually adopting diversity of views in parliament,” Metwally emphasized.
Fatima Payman’s shock resignation drew widespread media coverage from radio to newspapers and TV networks from all political bias angles. Moreover, Fatima Payman’s resignation divided the ALP, and the Labor’s Friends of Palestine group warned of a “chasm” between the Albanese Labor Government and “huge swathes of the party’s traditional base.” On the other hand, Albanese criticized Payman and disagreed with Payman’s comments that she had “exhausted” channels to raise concerns inside party forums. Moreover, Payman affirmed that she had been “exiled” by the Labor Party and colleagues. In a statement she posted on Facebook, she alleged that she had been removed from caucus meetings and removed from group chats. “Yesterday, the prime minister suspended me indefinitely from the Australian Labor Party caucus,” Payman said. “Since then, I have lost all contact with my caucus colleagues. I have been removed from caucus meetings, committees, internal group chats, and whips bulletins. As a result, I will abstain from voting on Senate matters for the remainder of the week, unless a matter of conscience arises where I’ll uphold the true values and principles of the Labor Party,” she said. “I will use this time to reflect on my future and the best way to represent the people of Western Australia.”
Fatima Payman announced that after leaving the Labor Party, she is set to stay in the upper house as an independent. However, senior Labor figures are saying Payman should quit parliament. Finance Minister Katy Gallagher on the ABC 7.30 program said Payman’s “moral conscience” will not allow her to stay in parliament. “If it was me, I wouldn’t stay in the parliament. I would feel that as an obligation to the Labor Party. If I’m elected as a Labor Party senator, I would find it impossible to sit in the chamber as anything else,” she said.
Fatima Payman’s suspension signifies a divide in Australian politics, especially on the support for Palestine and for a politician making decisions that she thought were in the best interest of society. Her impact has had an effect on multicultural representation for the Labor Party as two officeholders for the Labor’s multicultural branch WA quit the party due to the treatment she received. “As we all witnessed what happened to Senator Fatima Payman and ALP’s spineless stance about the genocide in Gaza and its total disregard for the multicultural members, I’m resigning from this party,” Demir wrote in a WhatsApp message seen by Guardian Australia. “I wish good luck to those who want to remain as useful fools waiting to be discarded like toilet paper once they are used.”
Former Labor strategist Kos Samaras emphasized that Payman’s suspension will have serious political repercussions for Labor. “The impact of this decision will resonate through suburbs like Sydney’s Lakemba and Broadmeadows in Melbourne and many more of Labor’s diverse electorates,” he said. “A fire was already smouldering in these areas. Now there is a real danger of it becoming an inferno.”
Overall, Fatima Payman left the Labor Party after being suspended from the Labor Party. However, Payman will still be in politics as an Independent Senator. She has received numerous support from fellow politicians and community members. The significance of Fatima Payman’s suspension will resonate in Australian politics for a while and probably affect politicians from diverse and culturally linguistic backgrounds such as Payman.
