A senior Liberal has rejected Jacinta Nampijinpa Price’s accusations that he engaged in “cowardly and inappropriate behaviour” and has publicly called on the senator to apologise for the “ongoing harm” her remarks about Indian migrants have caused.
Alex Hawke, the manager of opposition business, has confirmed he called the Northern Territory senator’s office on Wednesday after he saw her interview on the ABC’s Afternoon Briefing program in which she claimed the government was bringing in “large numbers” of Indian migrants because they voted for the Labor Party.
Mr Hawke said he spoke to Senator Nampijinpa Price the following day, and in that conversation encouraged her to apologise and nip the story in the bud.
“I had the guts to ring her and say, ‘I think you’ve got a problem and I think you should apologise to the community,'” he told Sky News.
“I was of the view that an apology would fix this.
“I’ve heard from her and I believe her. She didn’t mean these comments, she wasn’t being racist, but it came out that way.”
Alex Hawke, flanked by, Sussan Ley, says he encouraged Jacinta Nampijinpa Price to apologise. (AAP: Mick Tsikas)
The fact Senator Nampijinpa Price made the comments just days after anti-immigration rallies across the country — some specifically targeting Indian Australians — made it a “particularly bad week”, according to Mr Hawke.
Senator Nampijinpa Price has sought to clarify her remarks and insists she did not intend to “disparage” the Indian Australian community, but she is resisting calls from her colleagues to say sorry.
Yesterday, she further fuelled internal tensions when she wrote a fiery post on social media, accusing Mr Hawke of “berating” one of her staff members and engaging in “cowardly and inappropriate conduct”.
“If people want to talk about the so-called ‘woman problem’ in the Liberal Party it’s this: we don’t stand up for women when they’re mistreated by their own colleagues,” Senator Nampijinpa Price wrote.
Mr Hawke has rejected that accusation, saying “I can’t understand how this is a gendered issue” and insists he had nothing more than a “1 or 2-minute” phone call with one of Senator Nampijinpa Price’s staffers, in which he offered to help clean up her comments.
The ongoing drama is creating a major headache for Opposition Leader Sussan Ley, who has moved into damage control with the Indian Australian community, holding round tables and taking a very public tour through Little India on Sunday.
Ms Ley has also declined to apologise for Senator Nampijinpa Price’s remarks but has called them “wrong” and insists they will not be repeated.
Behind the scenes, Liberals are mortified and fear the work the party has done to win over one of Australia’s largest and fastest-growing diasporas has been undone in a matter of minutes.
Liberal Party faces backlash over Price Indian comments
They also worry the Northern Territory senator, who jumped from the Nationals to the Liberals earlier this year to run on a leadership ticket with Angus Taylor, has ignited yet another bitter internal feud, with Mr Taylor and Mr Hawke leading rival factions in New South Wales.
In her social media post, Senator Nampijinpa Price alleged Mr Hawke effectively threatened her staff that “if I did not comply with his requests, I may end up like another female member of the Coalition”.
That was a reference to Victorian senator Jane Hume who, during the election campaign, made an off-hand remark about Chinese spies allegedly volunteering for the Labor Party — comments that were circulated widely within the diaspora and were considered damaging to the Liberals.
Senator Hume on Monday said she was “shocked” that her name was being mentioned in dispatches and reminded her colleagues that the Australian public “expects more of us”.
“I am still reeling a little bit … I am not sure entirely what this is all about and why my name needs to be included,” she told Sky News.
“I have just been focusing on the committee work that I need to do and the policy work I’ve done.
“I think the most important thing here is that we move on from this. Jacinta has stepped back from her words that she said last week. She said that she was wrong, and that we move on.”
Mr Hawke would not confirm exactly what he said to Senator Nampijinpa Price or her staff member, saying: “She said a lot of things that I wouldn’t report … and I said a lot of things and they’re not for publication.”
Nationals MP Barnaby Joyce agreed it was time for his Coalition colleague to say sorry and put an end to this damaging episode.
“You make mistakes in politics all the time and the best thing to do is apologise and move on, get off it and get onto another topic,” he said.