Peter FitzSimons’ Republican group baffles Australia with strange lizard post: ‘I’m becoming more and more convinced this is a monarchist front’
- The Australian Republican Movement intensifies its operations after the death of the Queen
- The latest tweet from the movement has drawn a lot of attention for a strange reason
- Peter Fitzsimon’s group published a photo that many connected with a conspiracy.
- ARM CEO said connections between post and conspiracies were ‘absurd’
Peter FitzSimons’ republican group has baffled Australians with a quirky social media post focused on lizards, as it launches a new push for the country to break ties with the monarchy.
The Australian Republican Movement, chaired by the Sydney-based commentator and author, urged Australians to “think about the future of the nation” in a tweet featuring an image of the iconic outback lizard, the thorny devil, on Friday.
The organization posted: ‘We now have a King of Australia. Charles is not one of us and we do not choose to be our Head of State. We hear you and agree that the concept of an Australian king is disturbing and strange. Now is the time for us to think about the future of our nation.
But it was the bizarre selection of photos of the Australian alligator sitting on a sand dune accompanying the post that caught the attention of readers.
The Australian Republican Movement, chaired by the Sydney-based commentator and author, called on Australians to “think about the future of the nation” in a tweet featuring an image of the iconic outback lizard, the thorny devil, on Friday.
Peter FitzSimons’ Australian Republican Movement (pictured with wife Lisa Wilkinson) has stepped up its campaign following the Queen’s death.
One Twitter user was so exasperated by the post that he joked: “(I’m) more and more convinced that they are a monarchist front.”
A cyber security entrepreneur could not understand the choice of mascot.
‘Struggling to decipher the visual metaphor here… long live the lizard king? Don’t you step on me Australian wildlife is bad** and sometimes it’s funny to point it out.
A journalist delved into the iconography.
“An inspired decision to make the majestic Thorny Devil the official mascot of the Republican movement,” wrote Josh Butler.
Others joked about the ‘lizard people’. In science fiction and radical conspiracy theories, the idea that “lizard people” secretly own major world leaders is a widely used trope.
One prankster retweeted the post and said, “Are you seriously suggesting we elect a different type of reptile as head of state?” retweeting the post.
One Twitter user was so taken aback by the tweet that he suggested that the ARM was actually a monarchist front.
Sandy Biar, executive director of the Australian Republican Movement, told Daily Mail Australia that any connection made between the image and reptilian conspiracy theories was “absurd”.
“The image obviously had nothing to do with those conspiracy theories.”
She said the movement was ramping up its operations after observing the period of mourning for the late Queen and her service to the country.
‘However, we now have a new King that we did not elect, who has resumed his duties as King.
“Charles III is now going about business as usual and now is the time for us as a nation to have a serious discussion about our future and why we should be independent from the British Monarchy,” said Ms Biar.
‘Our Head of State must be an Australian, elected by Australians and accountable to us.’
The Queen was much loved during her reign, but many pro-Republican Australians hoped that the country’s attachment to the monarchy would be severed after her death.
But instead of increasing support for the monarchy, recent polls by Yougov and Roy Morgan following the Queen’s death show that the majority of Australians want the country to remain under a royal Head of State.