Latham’s comments triggered death threats against Sydney MP, court told
Former NSW One Nation leader Mark Latham triggered a wave of abuse including death threats against Sydney MP Alex Greenwich when he posted a tweet playing on offensive stereotypes about gay men, the Federal Court has heard.
Greenwich, the independent NSW MP for Sydney, filed defamation proceedings last year after Latham, an independent MP in the NSW upper house, posted and deleted a highly graphic and offensive comment on Twitter, now X, on March 30.
Former NSW One Nation leader Mark Latham arrives for a defamation trial brought against him by Sydney MP Alex Greenwich.Credit: Dominic Lorrimer
Greenwich is also suing Latham over related comments he made to Sydney’s The Daily Telegraph on April 1. Greenwich described the tweet as “defamatory and homophobic�.
The trial started in Sydney on Wednesday and is slated to run for up to three days. Dr Matt Collins, KC, acting for Greenwich, told the court his client, an openly gay man, had a proud record of standing up for his constituents and marginalised groups in the community.
MPs ‘sparred regularly’
Greenwich and Latham “sit on different points on the political spectrum�, he said, and had “sparred pretty regularly in public debate�.
Collins showed the court a series of posts on Twitter, now X, by Latham in February last year, published before the tweet at the centre of the defamation suit.
Sydney MP Alex Greenwich is suing NSW One Nation leader Mark Latham for defamation.Credit: Dominic Lorrimer
In one tweet, posted during the WorldPride festival in Sydney last year, Latham claimed “Alphabet� tourist numbers were down because “monkeypox has kept them away�. Collins said “Alphabet� appeared to be a derogatory term used by Latham to refer to the LGBTQI community.
Collins said the situation escalated “rather seriously� on March 21 last year, four days before the state election, when Latham spoke at a Catholic church in Belfield about what he called “religious freedom, parental rights, school education and protecting [non-government] schools from Alphabet Activism�.
About 15 LGBTQI protesters outside the event were reportedly confronted by violent counter-protesters, Collins said. He said Latham had repeatedly referred to Greenwich in an interview on March 22 and “got his facts completely wrong� by accusing him of instigating a violent protest.
Greenwich was subsequently quoted in The Sydney Morning Herald, describing Latham as a “disgusting human being�.
Tweet had ‘life of its own’
Latham posted the tweet at the centre of the case on March 30, five days after the state election.
“Disgusting? How does that compare with [commentary on sexual activity in graphic and offensive terms the Herald has chosen not to publish]?� he posted in response to Greenwich’s earlier remarks.
Collins said the tweet provoked a “torrent of abuse and vitriol�, including death threats, and “suggestions death was too good for people like Mr Greenwich�. The Sydney MP was “repeatedly called a groomer and a paedophile�, he said.
He said Latham had played upon tired and offensive stereotypes about gay men, including that gay men were “somehow depraved� and “can’t be trusted with children�.
Latham “went as low as possible�, Collins said, and the tweet “developed a life of its own�.
Latham subsequently tweeted: “I’m very sorry for saying I hate the idea of having anal sex with another man. Has it become compulsory?�
Lawyers for Greenwich allege in court documents that the tweet conveyed up to two defamatory meanings, namely that he “engages in disgusting sexual activities� and is “not a fit and proper person to be a [NSW MP] ... because he engages in disgusting sexual activities�.
Greenwich’s claim
Greenwich alleges Latham’s comments to the Telegraph conveyed up to two different defamatory meanings, including that he “is a disgusting human being who goes to schools to groom children to become homosexual�.
Latham’s comments to the Telegraph were contained in an article headlined: “‘Boo-hoo’: Latham doubles down after homophobic tweet outcry.�
“When [Greenwich] calls someone a disgusting human being for attending a meeting in a church hall, maybe attention will turn to some of his habits,� Latham told the publication.
“Greenwich goes into schools talking to kids about being gay. I didn’t want to be accused of anything similar, leaving that kind of content on my socials.�
Latham’s defence
Latham has denied the publications convey the alleged meanings but is seeking to rely on a series of defences, including in part on a new public interest defence. His lawyers also argue Greenwich has not met a new serious harm threshold for bringing a defamation claim, but Collins submitted that threshold had been met.