An Australian activist sought to bring suit against King Charles for alleged genocide, but a court rejected that bid. Three judges in the Australian appellate court said that activist Uncle Robbie Thorpe's case for genocide could not go ahead.
Thorpe, an elder of the Krautatungalung indigenous tribe, could still appeal to the High Court of that nation, but if that fails, he said, he'll take his case to the International Criminal Court. He said he doesn't believe justice is possible in the Australian judicial system. This is his third attempt to sue the king in the last three years.
"The International Criminal Court will expose Australia for what it really is—a lying, racist, illegal occupation committing genocide," he said, per CTV News. The ICC, however, is not open for private citizens to bring cases and if the UN Security Council did prefer prosecution, Britain would be unlikely to allow it to go forward.
Thorpe is described as an "Aboriginal political activist" who "stands as part of a long line of Indigenous resistance to invasion." He has fought to include Indigenous history in Australian education.
What's his issue with the King? He claims that the monarch, who is the official head of state of Australia as the nation is part of the Commonwealth nations along with Canada and New Zealand, has been "perpetuating genocide by maintaining systems that disadvantage Indigenous people across numerous socioeconomic measures," CTV reports.
Australia has a difficult relationship with the Indigenous communities on the island and has bent over to accommodate them. The nation holds an annual "Sorry Day" during which white Australians are meant to apologize to the Indigenous tribes for colonization. Sorry Day is part of "National Reconciliation Week," where the federal government "encourages Australians to learn about our shared histories, cultures and achievements, and to recommit to reconciliation and justice for First Nations' People."
The nation has also been very welcoming to refugees. A Sudanese woman who sought refuge in Australia claimed on a television panel that there was "no white culture" in Australia and that the only culture in the nation is Indigenous and refugee culture.
"I have no intention of assimilating," Nyadol Nyuon said. "But there is no white culture," she said. "I just think that if we start talking about terms like Anglo-Celtic and stuff it creates this idea that there is some form of white culture that exists somewhere that then can be recreated here in Australia. It goes back to this idea that Australia is sort of monocultural." She then went on to praise Indigenous peoples.
King Charles, as the monarch, is immune from prosecution in Britain and this likely extends to his position in Australia. This has not been tested, but the court's refusal to hear the case means the immunity has not yet come up in court.
Thorpe, an elder of the Krautatungalung indigenous tribe, could still appeal to the High Court of that nation, but if that fails, he said, he'll take his case to the International Criminal Court. He said he doesn't believe justice is possible in the Australian judicial system. This is his third attempt to sue the king in the last three years.
"The International Criminal Court will expose Australia for what it really is—a lying, racist, illegal occupation committing genocide," he said, per CTV News. The ICC, however, is not open for private citizens to bring cases and if the UN Security Council did prefer prosecution, Britain would be unlikely to allow it to go forward.
Thorpe is described as an "Aboriginal political activist" who "stands as part of a long line of Indigenous resistance to invasion." He has fought to include Indigenous history in Australian education.
What's his issue with the King? He claims that the monarch, who is the official head of state of Australia as the nation is part of the Commonwealth nations along with Canada and New Zealand, has been "perpetuating genocide by maintaining systems that disadvantage Indigenous people across numerous socioeconomic measures," CTV reports.
Australia has a difficult relationship with the Indigenous communities on the island and has bent over to accommodate them. The nation holds an annual "Sorry Day" during which white Australians are meant to apologize to the Indigenous tribes for colonization. Sorry Day is part of "National Reconciliation Week," where the federal government "encourages Australians to learn about our shared histories, cultures and achievements, and to recommit to reconciliation and justice for First Nations' People."
The nation has also been very welcoming to refugees. A Sudanese woman who sought refuge in Australia claimed on a television panel that there was "no white culture" in Australia and that the only culture in the nation is Indigenous and refugee culture.
"I have no intention of assimilating," Nyadol Nyuon said. "But there is no white culture," she said. "I just think that if we start talking about terms like Anglo-Celtic and stuff it creates this idea that there is some form of white culture that exists somewhere that then can be recreated here in Australia. It goes back to this idea that Australia is sort of monocultural." She then went on to praise Indigenous peoples.
King Charles, as the monarch, is immune from prosecution in Britain and this likely extends to his position in Australia. This has not been tested, but the court's refusal to hear the case means the immunity has not yet come up in court.
