Australian Coalition Reunited After Dispute Over Hate Speech Laws

Canberra. Australia's main opposition Liberal-National coalition formally reunited on Sunday after being divided for more than two weeks over laws concerning the control of hate speech.

Appearing jointly in Canberra, Liberal leader Susan Ley announced the coalition was back and looking toward the future, not the past. National Party leader David Littleproud acknowledged that the split was due to a serious ideological issue but stated that an agreement had finally been reached.

The coalition broke down on the 22nd. Following an attack targeting the Jewish community at Bondi Beach in December, the Liberals supported the hate speech reforms introduced by the Labor government, but the Nationals opposed them, fearing they would endanger freedom of expression. The Nationals boycotted the vote in the lower house and voted against it in the Senate. The new law provides for a ban on groups spreading hate and strict penalties for preachers inciting violence.

With this, the coalition, which suffered a heavy electoral defeat last year, split for the second time in 12 months. Previously, they separated after disagreements over energy and climate policy. Both parties have now agreed that no single party can unilaterally overturn a collective decision on the 'shadow cabinet'. Meanwhile, the coalition is also under pressure from the growing popularity of anti-immigration populist leader Pauline Hanson's 'One Nation' party.