Pauline Hanson Wants Paedophiles In Australia To Be Chemically Castrated
One Nation leader Pauline Hanson wants to see harsher penalties for paedophiles in Australia and has called for them to be chemically castrated if convicted.
She also wants to see a national public sex offender registry established so families can be aware of the dangers potentially lurking in their neighbourhood.
"People are very concerned about their children's safety and they want strong laws and penalties for those convicted of paedophilia," Ms Hanson said in an interview with the Daily Mail Australia.
"I support chemical castration and tougher penalties for paedophiles, and the establishment of a national database of paedophiles.
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"For sex offences not involving children, I consider it appropriate for the presiding magistrate or judge to determine the appropriate penalty under the relevant law."
Hanson's calls for a public sex offender register will face an uphill battle to come to fruition, with previous attempts falling flat.
In 2019, Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton vowed to establish a 'name and shame' register for paedophiles.
Dutton even revealed $7.8 million had been put aside by the government to go towards the public register at the last federal election.
Under Dutton's 'name and shame' policy, sex offenders would have a range of personal information made available to the public - such as names, aliases, photos, their location, and the nature of their crimes.
However, a 2019 report shows that states baulked at the proposal - and all states and territories needed to sign on for the legislation to work.
Despite Dutton's best efforts to rally the states, Queensland Premier Annastasia Palaszczuk's Labor government and the Queensland Greens voted against the motion, leaving it dead in the water.
But Hanson could have an ally in South Australia, with now-Premier Peter Malinauskas vowing back in March to establish a sex offender registry in the state if Labor was voted into power.
South Australian Labor has since followed through on their election promise, moving in early May to introduce a suite of changes to child sex offender sentencing, according to InDaily.
Attorney General Kyam Maher said he wanted South Australia to be 'the toughest in the nation when it comes to protecting and punishing predators'.
"Labor has listened to survivors of child sex abuse, their families and the wider public, and we are well aware of the need for tougher action on the monsters who prey on our most vulnerable,” he said in a statement.
"These predators inflict lifelong and devastating consequences on their victims and the penalties imposed must reflect that."
Rachel Lang