SYDNEY — Australia’s prime minister has offered an explanation for comments made recently about fomer Australian of the Year Grace Tame in which he labeled her “difficult”.Anthony Albanese issued a qualified apology on Thursday, saying he was sorry if his remarks were misinterpreted, adding that he was referring to the “difficult life” Tame, a child sex abuse survivor, had experienced.During a one-word response game, Albanese used the adjective to describe Tame, who was named the 2021 Australian of the Year for her advocacy for child sexual abuse survivors.Tame, 31, said the description was “misogynist’s code for a woman who won’t comply. History tends to call her ‘courageous’.”It prompted Albanese to apologize “if there was any misinterpretation” and that Tame “has had a very difficult life, but she deserves great credit for turning that into a benefit for others”.But hours later, Tame dismissed Albanese’s apology, taking to Instagram to post: “Spare me the condescension, old man. We all know what you meant.”Tame compared Albanese to former prime minister Scott Morrison. Tame had a notoriously tense meeting with Morrison at The Lodge in 2022.Greens leader Larissa Waters posted on X that calling Tame difficult was “completely unwarranted”.”Labeling women as difficult won’t silence us. It won’t stop us speaking truth to power. Next time try ‘unbreakable’ or ‘warrior’ or ‘fierce’, Prime Minister,” she wrote.On Wednesday, other answers that Albanese gave during the rapid-response quiz included “president” for Donald Trump, , “leader” for the new head of the opposition coalition Angus Taylor and “divisive” for Pauline Hanson, leader of anti-immigration party One Nation.When asked for a response to Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, he said “grub” which drew applause from the audience.Tame was awarded Australian of the Year in recognition of her tireless efforts to overturn laws in the state of Tasmania that made it illegal for victims of sexual abuse to speak publicly about their experiences.In 2022, videos and images of Tame refusing to smile at an official event with the then-prime minister Scott Morrison went viral.She had been openly critical about Morrison over his government’s response to sexual assault allegations and a toxic workplace culture in parliament in the wake of political staffer Brittany Higgins’ allegation that she was raped in her boss’s office in 2019.Tame recently drew criticism after she spoke at a pro-Palestine rally this month and used the phrase “globalize the intifada”.The phrase is currently under consideration to be banned as part of new laws cracking down on “hateful” slogans after the Bondi Beach shootings.The term intifada came into popular use during the Palestinian uprising against the Israeli occupation of the West Bank and Gaza Strip in 1987.Some have described the term as a call for violence against Jewish people. Others have said it is a call for peaceful resistance to Israel’s occupation of the West Bank and actions in Gaza.Some politicians, such as former deputy prime minister Barnaby Joyce who recently defected to anti-immigration party One Nation, called for Tame to be stripped of her Australian of the Year title because she used the phrase. — AgenciesSYDNEY — Australia’s prime minister has offered an explanation for comments made recently about fomer Australian of the Year Grace Tame in which he labeled her “difficult”.Anthony Albanese issued a qualified apology on Thursday, saying he was sorry if his remarks were misinterpreted, adding that he was referring to the “difficult life” Tame, a child sex abuse survivor, had experienced.During a one-word response game, Albanese used the adjective to describe Tame, who was named the 2021 Australian of the Year for her advocacy for child sexual abuse survivors.Tame, 31, said the description was “misogynist’s code for a woman who won’t comply. History tends to call her ‘courageous’.”It prompted Albanese to apologize “if there was any misinterpretation” and that Tame “has had a very difficult life, but she deserves great credit for turning that into a benefit for others”.But hours later, Tame dismissed Albanese’s apology, taking to Instagram to post: “Spare me the condescension, old man. We all know what you meant.”Tame compared Albanese to former prime minister Scott Morrison. Tame had a notoriously tense meeting with Morrison at The Lodge in 2022.Greens leader Larissa Waters posted on X that calling Tame difficult was “completely unwarranted”.”Labeling women as difficult won’t silence us. It won’t stop us speaking truth to power. Next time try ‘unbreakable’ or ‘warrior’ or ‘fierce’, Prime Minister,” she wrote.On Wednesday, other answers that Albanese gave during the rapid-response quiz included “president” for Donald Trump, , “leader” for the new head of the opposition coalition Angus Taylor and “divisive” for Pauline Hanson, leader of anti-immigration party One Nation.When asked for a response to Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, he said “grub” which drew applause from the audience.Tame was awarded Australian of the Year in recognition of her tireless efforts to overturn laws in the state of Tasmania that made it illegal for victims of sexual abuse to speak publicly about their experiences.In 2022, videos and images of Tame refusing to smile at an official event with the then-prime minister Scott Morrison went viral.She had been openly critical about Morrison over his government’s response to sexual assault allegations and a toxic workplace culture in parliament in the wake of political staffer Brittany Higgins’ allegation that she was raped in her boss’s office in 2019.Tame recently drew criticism after she spoke at a pro-Palestine rally this month and used the phrase “globalize the intifada”.The phrase is currently under consideration to be banned as part of new laws cracking down on “hateful” slogans after the Bondi Beach shootings.The term intifada came into popular use during the Palestinian uprising against the Israeli occupation of the West Bank and Gaza Strip in 1987.Some have described the term as a call for violence against Jewish people. Others have said it is a call for peaceful resistance to Israel’s occupation of the West Bank and actions in Gaza.Some politicians, such as former deputy prime minister Barnaby Joyce who recently defected to anti-immigration party One Nation, called for Tame to be stripped of her Australian of the Year title because she used the phrase. — Agencies
Australian PM apologises for labeling child sex abuse survivor as 'difficult'
