Conservative political pundit Candace Owens has been denied permission to enter Australia, with officials citing her record of controversial statements as reasoning.
Australian immigration minister Tony Burke explained the decision on Sunday, citing Owens' previous comments regarding the Holocaust and slavery as examples of the kind of inflammatory rhetoric Owens purports.
"From downplaying the impact of the Holocaust with comments about [notorious Nazi doctor Josef] Mengele through to claims that Muslims started slavery, Candace Owens has the capacity to incite discord in almost every direction," Burke said, according to The Guardian.
Just this past summer, Owens became embroiled in controversy after she seemingly questioned the validity of reports which indicated that Nazis performed experiments on prisoners, calling them "completely absurd" and "bizarre propaganda".
Owens, who had scheduled a 5-day speaking tour in Australia which was set to commence on Nov. 17, had also been offering fans the opportunity to pay $1,500 for a private dinner with her on the tour. A VIP meet and greet would have cost fans $295, whereas general admission tickets were marked at $95.
As part of the tour, Owens was scheduled to visit Sydney, Perth, Adelaide and Brisbane, and Auckland in New Zealand.
"This is a victory for truth, for decency, and for the millions of Jewish souls and millions of others whose memory she so shamelessly desecrated," said Dvir Abramovich, chairman of the Anti-Defamation Commission, a pro-Jewish group, to Newsweek.
"The decision by the government to bar Owens sends a resounding message: Australia has no place for those who mock the suffering of genocide survivors and insult the memories of the 6 million Jews who perished. This is a line in the sand."
"Australia's national interest is best served when Candace Owens is somewhere else," said Burke on Sunday.
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