Speaking on Q and A, Pauline Hanson looks for the answers to radical Islam. Courtesy: ABC

SENATOR-elect Pauline Hanson had few friends on the Q & A panel on Monday night, but she did not back down on any of her controversial views with everything from the issues of Muslims and climate being thrown at her.

As protesters gathered outside the ABC studios in Sydney — alarming at least one Muslim woman in the audience who feared for her safety — inside, the One Nation leader wrongly claimed terrorism was a new concept to Australia and appeared to suggest Indonesia wasn’t a democracy.

She also slammed Islam as a “so-called religion” and was eventually slapped down by Labor Senator Sam Dastyari who branded her attack as the “politics of fear and hate”.

“I understand Islam does not believe in democracy, freedom of speech, freedom of assembly or freedom of the press,” she said.

The noisy protest was not aimed at anyone but her, she added.

“The protesters were against me, because I choose to speak up against this matter, so I have protesters which are trying to shut down freedom of speech. I want answers to the questions.”

Up to six people were arrested when hundreds of rival protesters outside the studio. As many as 60 police officers separated about 200 anti-One Nation protesters from up to 60 of her supporters outside the main entrance to the ABC headquarters in Ultimo.

Ms Hanson said Australians were too terrified to walk the streets.

“They’re in fear of terrorism which is happening around the world. Why? Because of Islam. Because you have the radicalisation — radicalisation is actually happening in Australia. Who is it under? What religion? So-called religion? So we actually have to find the right answers to this so we can all live in peace and harmony.”

She wouldn’t be moved when told by an audience member she was “pushing fear into the community” and was creating “not one nation, you are creating a divided nation”.

Hanson said: “To bury your head in the sand is not the answer to it. Radicalisation is not just happening by fearmongering, you know...”

Senator Dastyari said he was “flabbergasted” by her comments.

More than 100 people in front of the ABC building in Ultimo protesting Pauline Hanson's appearance on #QandA tonight pic.twitter.com/hwubWqDYgy — ABC News Sydney (@abcnewsSydney) July 18, 2016

“The politics of fear, hate and division is not the politics that we should be espousing as a nation and, look, Ms Hanson here is not an amateur, she’s not inexperienced.”

He said she had begun blaming indigenous Australians then it was her “swamped by Asians” in the 1990s and now the Muslim community were in her sights.

“It is the politics of picking one section of our community. Pitting one section of our community against another section of our community, about simplifying complex problems and placing the blame on one group at one point in time. It is the politics of fear and division and,

Ms Hanson, you’re incredibly good at it,” he said, as the audience erupted with cheers.

Again, she was unmoved.

“We have radicalisation and problems in our country, yet you put it back on me that I’m creating fear? You’re saying terrorism and fear on the streets and people don’t feel safe in our country or what’s happened in Nice, Paris, Germany or other countries around the world, America? That’s not happening?”

He told her, again, she was playing “the politics of fear and hate” because it served her political interests.

“...And you have been doing it for the past 20 years and you’re very good at it.”

Ms Hanson appeared stunned at one point during the ABC panel show when Senator Dastyari said he was a Muslim.

“Are you a Muslim?” she asked him. “Really?”

“Yeah and I have never hidden it away,” he answered her.

“I was born in an Islamic nation and by being born...in an Islamic nation and under Iranian law, under Islamic law and in places like Iran, my parents fled to be able to come to this country.

Ms Hanson: “You’re a practising Muslim? This is quite interesting.”

Senator Dastyari accused her of making a joke about a serious matter to which she said, “I’m surprised. I did not know that about you.”

At that point Greens Senator Larissa Waters interjected: “Because he doesn’t have three heads?”

When discussion swung to her ban on Muslims coming to Australia — “I think we need a moratorium” — she would not directly say whether she would have liked to see Senator Dastyari’s family, who came from Iran in the 1980s, blocked.

She returned to familiar ground.

“Muslims have been a part of Australia for a long, long time, many, many years. You go back to the gold rush days and they were in Australia, but it is only in the last 10, 20 years that we have seen a rise of terrorism on the streets. You’ve got to ask yourself the question, why?”

But there were more questions from the audience for Ms Hanson to front up and explain her divisive politics.

Khaled Elomar asked her what the basis of her feelings were — hate, fear, or ignorance?

She told him it was “none of the above”. Instead, she was driven by a desire to have peace and harmony on Australian streets, she said.

“It’s about us getting on together as a nation and working together with that fear among us. Why have we got so much fear on our streets? Why did the Lindt cafe happen, why is Curtis Cheng murdered?”

One of the many things that didn’t get resolved on Monday night’s show was whether or not the Senator-elect would take audience member Mohammed Attai’s invitation for a meal with his Muslim family.

“With respect to that, would you be willing to take my offer to inviting you for lunch or dinner - whichever suits you best - with me and my Muslim family, while we have something Halal I’ll ensure what you have is something not Halal. Would you kindly accept my invitation?”

Haram snack pack invite for Pauline Hanson On Q and A, an audience member extended an invitation to Pauline Hanson to share a Haram snack pack and share their views. Courtesy: ABC

She told him it was a kind invitation and she was happy to spend time with many Australians.

“My offer extends to anyone who also might dislike Islam and all Muslims in a pursuit to create further understanding so over any meal, when it’s Halal or haram.

“We can talk. You can get in touch with my office and see what happens, yeah,” Ms Hanson said.

When the questions and debate moved briefly off race and religion, it was still controversial, when Ms Hanson demanded the “truth” about climate change.

“You talk about the Greens and climate change, you’re shutting down this country!

“You’re creating more of a cost...Because you’re creating more of a cost every day.

“It’s not us shutting the coal industry down. Even climate change, that needs to be debated. Let’s have the true facts about this,” Senator Hanson said.

“We know you don’t accept the facts of climate science,” Senator Waters said.

andrew.koubaridis@news.com.au