Far-right figure should be denied Australian visa, MP says
- Published
Mike Enoch has been invited to speak at an event in Sydney
Controversial US far-right figure Mike Enoch should be prevented from entering Australia, a government MP has said.
Mr Enoch, real name Mike Peinovich, has been criticised for promoting white nationalism and making disparaging comments about Jews and Muslims.
He is scheduled to speak at a nationalist convention, DingoCon, in July, according to a Facebook page called the Australian Fascist.
George Christensen, a conservative MP, has said he should be denied a visa.
"Like radical Islamic sheikhs that come here to spread messages of hate, these people should not be allowed into the country," Mr Christensen told the Australian Broadcasting Corp.
Immigration Minister Peter Dutton has the power to refuse a visa to anyone deemed "not to be of good character".
Asked whether Mr Enoch had applied for a visa, Mr Dutton's department said it did not comment on individual cases.
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Australia has previously denied or cancelled visas to people including anti-abortion campaigner Troy Newman, "pick-up artist" Julien Blanc and singer Chris Brown.
Who is Mike Enoch?
He is a US writer responsible for a podcast called the Daily Shoah - a reference to the Holocaust.
The podcast has promoted white supremacy and denigrated religious and non-white groups.
The Anti-Defamation League, an anti-bigotry group, has described, external the website which hosts the podcast as "racist and anti-Semitic", crediting it with encouraging widespread abuse on social media.
In January, Mr Enoch's identity was revealed as Mike Peinovich, a former tech worker who lives in New York.
What is DingoCon?
A convention organised by The Dingoes, an Australian ultra-nationalist group operating anonymously on the internet.
Tickets to the conference have been advertised for A$88 (£50; $65). The number 88 is reference to "heil Hitler" - as "h" is the eighth letter of the alphabet.
The Dingoes describe themselves as "politically-incorrect larrikins in our national tradition who take great enjoyment in ridiculing the grievance-mongering of our media and imported popular culture".
Mr Christensen said he regretted appearing on a podcast run by the group in February.
"It has since been pointed out to me they're extremely anti-Semitic, regularly make racial-based slurs and they subscribe to white nationalism," he told the ABC on Monday.