Resort bans controversial Aussie MP from meeting

Resort bans controversial Aussie MP from meeting

PERTH, Australia (AFP): Controversial Australian politician
Pauline Hanson has been banned from speaking at a fashionable
resort here next month because of her views on Asian immigration,
The West Australian reported yesterday.

Burswood Resort spokesman Bruce Brislin was quoted as saying
that Hanson, an Independent MP from Queensland, would not be
allowed to use the resort for a meeting on May 2.

The management was concerned that would upset corporate
clients and visitors, Brislin said.

The Malaysian casino and hotel operator, Metroplex, has a 20
percent stake in Burswood, making it the biggest shareholder.
Western Australian Independent MP Paul Filing has accused
Burswood of censoring Hanson because it does not agree with her
immigration views.

The decision was un-Australian and unacceptable, he said.

"They have done this because they are worried she might be an
affront to their Asian clients," he said.

"They are more than happy to take money from the local
citizens, but they will not allow people to voice their views."
Brislin told the paper: "We have to take into consideration the
impact that such a meeting would have on our visitors and
corporate clients.

"The last thing we need is disruption to our business and as
we are a business we have to take into consideration our
corporate client base."

Hanson has been invited by supporters to talk to a series of
gatherings in Western Australia early next month.

The meeting that was to have been held at the Burswood Resort
will now take place at a different venue.

She has become one of Australia's highest profile politicians
since last year when she outlined her controversial views on
immigration and Aboriginal policy in her maiden speech in
Parliament.