State One Nation leader claims students skipping class to protest against Pauline Hanson ‘hate Australia’

The state leader of One Nation in South Australia has claimed high school and university students planning to skip class to protest against Pauline Hanson and her party “hate” the country.

Students across Australia, including in Sydney, Melbourne, and Adelaide, are set to walk out of class on Thursday, August 13, in opposition to the rise of the minor party and the policies they platform, with the protests being dubbed The protest, dubbed “Students Say No To Hanson”.

Hanson and One Nation have surged in polling at both the federal level and in several states this year. The party won five seats in the South Australian election, and is expected to play a key role in the Victorian election in November.

The most recent polls have also shown it is ahead of Labor in the primary vote federally.

One Nation’s leader in South Australia, Cory Bernardi, was scathing in his appraisal of the students and their plans for protest.

“They’re ridiculous and delusional,” he told nine.com.au.

“They clearly hate, clearly hate Australia.”

In Adelaide, students in anti-capitalist and socialist groups at South Australian Universities, as well as high school students in the state, met on Tuesday and will convene again today to plan their protest action on August 13.

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Bernardi said two party members of One Nation were asked to leave Tuesday’s meeting after being recognised.

He claimed the party members went to the meeting “to see what it was about”, and called the students organising the protests “intolerant”.

“These aren’t people interested in different of points view,” he claimed.

Students in Adelaide will meet at the State Parliament House for their protest, while students around the country will march on parliament buildings and other major landmarks in cities across the country.

The student representative council (SRC) of the University of Sydney, the city’s biggest university, confirmed they would be taking part in the protests.

“The SRC and its collectives say NO to Pauline Hanson and her racist, anti-immigration, anti-worker, anti-women, and far-right movement!” the group said in a social media post.

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“Students need to stand together and be vocal against her hate and misinformation.”

Hanson has drawn criticism in recent weeks for statements made at the National Press Club in June, where she criticised multiculturalism and called for Australia to become a “monocultural” society.

She also met with controversial British far-right figure and convicted criminal, Tommy Robinson, in a visit to the UK in July.

Hanson confirmed her visit to the UK and a fashion show in Italy was partly funded by billionaire supporter, Gina Rinehart.

Protesters in Sydney will meet at Town Hall at around 1pm.

In Melbourne, several groups, including from RMIT, will meet at the State Library at around 2pm.

Hundreds of protesters gathered in the city on Monday to protest against Hanson after she announced several One Nation candidates for the upcoming state election.