Lawyers on behalf of Palestinian Australian author Randa Abdel-Fattah has threatened defamation proceedings against South Australian Premier Peter Malinauskas.
The move follows public commentary made by Malinauskas on Abdel-Fattah's scheduled appearance at Adelaide Writers' Week. Both the appearance and the Adelaide Writer's Week itself have since been cancelled.
Randa Abdel-Fattah Speaks on Defamation Threat
Taking to her Instagram account, Abdel-Fattah shared a statement explaining her thoughts on Malinauskas' public commentary.
"We have never met, and he has never attempted to contact me," Abdel-Fattah points out in her statement. "He knows nothing about me, beyond what he has been told by the Murdoch press and the pro-Israel lobby, which he has apparently accepted without question."
The author goes on to add that Malinauskas went even further.
"He made a public statement that suggested l am an extremist terrorist sympathiser and directly linked me to the Bondi atrocity," she said. "This was a vicious personal assault on me, a private citizen, by the highest public official in South Australia. It was defamatory and it terrified me."
Abdel-Fattah's full statement is available below.
What Malinauskas Said About Abdel-Fattah
Malinauskas previously expressed support for Abdel-Fattah's removal from the Adelaide Writer's Week, according to a report by The Guardian.
When asked to justify his comment, Malinauskas said, "Can you imagine if a far-right Zionist walked into a Sydney mosque and murdered 15 people?"
"Can you imagine that as the premier of this state, I would actively support a far-right Zionist going to writers' week and speaking hateful rhetoric towards Islamic people? Of course I wouldn't, but the reverse has happened in this instance," he added. "And I think that's a reasonable position for me to take, it's a view that I believe."
ABC News notes that Malinauskas claimed that he was not aware if a concerns notice has already been received.
"All of my remarks and all of my comments are on the public record and people will see that they're founded in a place of compassion and in the pursuit of decency towards one another," Malinauskas said.
Originally published on ibtimes.com.au
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