Pauline Hanson blames John Howard, Tony Abbott 'witch hunt' for her time in prison
She may be riding a new wave of support into the Senate but Pauline Hanson is still consumed by her past, releasing a tell-all documentary including details on her 11-week prison stint back in 2003.
Ms Hanson’s prison mug shot has surfaced more than a decade after the jail stint, with the One Nation leader laying the blame squarely on former Prime Minister John Howard and then-Minister Tony Abbott for the “sham” court case she endured.
Speaking from her Queensland home, Ms Hanson fights back tears as she describes her jail stay after being convicted of fraudulently obtaining electoral funding, estimated to be around half a million dollars.
She was sentenced to three years behind bars, but was released after serving 11 weeks on appeal.
Both she and her advisor at the time, David Ettridge, later had their convictions overturned.
Speaking ahead of her second stint in Australian politics, Ms Hanson says both Mr Howard and Mr Abbott were on a “witch hunt” to destroy her.
“I blame Tony Abbott [and] John Howard for my imprisonment and no one will ever change my opinion about that,” she says in the interview.
The claims form part of Ms Hanson’s explosive new documentary, Pauline Hanson: Please Explain!, directed by Anna Broinowski.
The former fish and chip shop owner says she was put on suicide watch on her first night inside Brisbane's Women's Correctional Centre and describes the impact the incarceration had on her family.
"I just felt everything was stripped away from me and how the people perceived me but I think what was more important is what my kids went through," she said.
"It took me a long time to get over it."
The documentary, featuring interviews from those closest to Ms Hanson, will air on the SBS at 8.35pm on Sunday, July 31.
