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Fatima Payman's closest allies: The group driving a push to remove
Labor from safe seats
(HTM) Source
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Tetyana Sukkar can't help but look at the federal government with
disdain as she sees the horrors unfolding in Gaza.
"Once upon a time, Labor represented the whole of the community. I
just don't see it that way anymore," the young Palestinian Australian
woman told SBS News.
Sukkar, who also represents the Islamic Women's Association, said
Labor senator Fatima 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.
Palestinian Australian Tetyana Sukkar says members of her community
feel their voices aren't being heard and aren't represented in
politics. Credit: SBS News
She's referring to a defining moment for the first-term senator, who
last Monday.
In doing so, Payman became the first Labor member in more than three
decades to cross the floor while in government. She told ABC Insiders
on Sunday she's prepared to do it again if another similar motion from
the Greens is put forward.
Her actions led Prime Minister Anthony Albanese to from the Labor
caucus on Sunday afternoon.
That move was unanimously backed by caucus the following day. Their
decision is in line with strict Australian Labor Party rules, formed
122 years ago, which do not allow for members to vote against policy
politicians.
"I did vote for Labor [in the past], and going forward I won't,"
Sukkar said.
"We need to do something, put our foot down and stand up for those
that are in need right now."
Polling analyst Kos Samaras, the founder of the political consultancy
firm RedBridge and a former Labor staffer, said Muslim women like
Sukkar represent one of the biggest threats to Labor heartland seats
as anger grows over the government's handling of the Hamas-Israel war.
According to Samaras, focus groups suggest young Muslim women who
resonate with Payman's experiences of feeling isolated in Australia
will cause the most "problems" for Labor.
"They're the post 9/11 generation. They've grown up in a country
that's made them feel like outsiders … They get abused on the street.
They feel like they have no access to power," he said.
"This particular incident with relation to Senator Payman is just
another reminder that if their generation speaks up or bobs their head
out of the parapet, they get into trouble."
That includes Yusra Metwally, an ALP member and part of the Labor
Friends of Palestine group. She said that, as the first hijab-wearing
parliamentarian, it is "unfair" to see what appears to be Payman being
"bullied" by her Labor colleagues.
Yusra Metwally, from Labor Friends of Palestine and a rank-and-file
member of the Labor Party, says she believes Fatima Payman has been
"bullied" and "singled out" for standing firm on "an important issue".
Source: SBS News / Rashida Yosufzai
"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," she said.
She said the issue extends beyond Muslim women, and that anyone who
prioritises human rights would be disappointed with how the government
has handled the Hamas-Israel war.
### First hijab-wearing parliamentarian 'exiled'
In her first speech to parliament two years ago, Payman's words rang
through the Senate chamber.
"I gave myself that audacity to challenge the system and to see how
far I would go. To see how much ground I could break. To see how much
change I could initiate," she said.
In her first term, the senator has been confronted with how much she
could challenge from within her own party.
In an Instagram post, the senator said she's been "exiled".
"These actions lead me to believe that some members are attempting to
intimidate me into resigning from the Senate," she said.
Just halfway into her first term, the feelings of isolation are clear
as jarring photographs are taken of Payman in Senate chambers, sitting
alone and withdrawn.
Fatima Payman says she has been "exiled" by her Labor colleagues after
voting for a Greens motion recognising Palestinian statehood. Source:
AAP / Mick Tsikas
It's a far cry from how she heartily described the positive workplace
culture just over a year ago.
"Before I came into this place, [hearing] these horrifying stories …
it would scare me. I'd be like, 'Man, what kind of place is this?'"
she told SBS News in March 2023.
"The workplace culture here is amazing, far better than what I had
anticipated coming in."
### Anne Aly says Fatima Payman is 'one of our sisters'
Australia's first Muslim female MP Anne Aly denies that Payman has
been exiled, saying MPs have personally reached out to Payman to
support her.
"We have welcomed her into our fold with open arms and we will
continue to offer her support, we will continue to reach out to her,
we will continue to treat her like one of our sisters," she told SBS
News.
### The Muslim vote
Labor's position on the Hamas-Israel war , who believe the government
has not shown adequate support for the Palestinian cause.
But the ALP's treatment of the first hijab-wearing parliamentarian has
now galvanised these groups collectively, vowing to snatch their vote
from Labor come the next federal election in 2025.
A coalition of Muslim groups called the Muslim Vote and Muslim Votes
Matter has established a political movement aimed at recruiting
independent candidates to run in Labor seats with large Arab and
Muslim populations.
Their adviser and barrister, Mahmud Hawila, told SBS News the movement
is "a well-funded campaign to punish Labor for being complicit in
genocide".
"We need politicians who will not back caucus and lobby groups over
their own morals and their own community. We need to start seeing some
real representation."
Aly, who became the first Muslim woman to be elected to parliament in
2016, says she is "very proud" of the diversity represented in
Australia's 47th parliament.
"I could not have imagined a time when I would have opened my eyes and
seen the amount of diversity in our Labor caucus … The way in which we
deal with that democratically within our party has encouraged that
diversity," she said.
But Hawila says that diversity resembles tokenism when varying views
are not welcomed in the caucus.
"Even though we are looking at the most diverse parliament in
Australia's history, we are seeing Fatima Payman being punished for
voting for her conscience … That is not diversity. It's tokenism and
diversity cannot just be skin deep.
"[Labor] had their chance to show their quality and back Senator
Payman. They made the wrong call and will see the consequences come
2025."
Samaras said Labor "can only get into trouble" if there are genuine
independent candidates in some Labor safe seats.
Those include the southwest Sydney seat of Watson held by Leader of
the House Tony Burke, as well as the neighbouring seat of Blaxland,
held by education minister Jason Clare. Other seats, like Calwell in
northwest Melbourne, are also at risk, according to Samaras.
But not all Muslims agree with their position. Sabrin Farooqui, a
Muslim western Sydney councillor and Labor member, believes
significant change can come from within major parties, rather than on
the outskirts.
"If the Muslim people think they will run as independents, I don't
support this idea. We need to work with the Labor Party to make the
change. Instead of leaving the party, we should work together."
Labor local government councillor Sabrin Farooqui says diversity is
important within politics. Source: SBS News
She says while she agrees with Payman's sentiments on recognising
Palestinian statehood, Labor rules must be followed.
"If I was in her position, I wouldn't have crossed the floor. I would
have worked on it, lobbied big time, in the team to make it happen
in."
But Sukkar believes it's time to change those rules.
"I think there should be an ability to vote against your party and not
be exiled and not be suspended indefinitely and not be [made to feel]
like your opinion doesn't matter," she told SBS News.
"Ultimately, until Palestine is recognised as a state … and our prime
minister and our parliament agrees and aligns with that value, I'll
always have that heaviness in my heart."
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