One Nation urges end to hate received by ex-candidate who shares name with alleged Invasion Day bomber
Western Australian One Nation leader Rod Caddies has urged people to stop jumping to conclusions and posting hateful comments about the party’s former Hidden Harbor candidate, who shares the same name with a man accused of throwing a bomb into a crowd of protesters at an Invasion Day rally.
Liam Christopher Hall’s candidate page on the One Nation website was closed after a restraining order preventing accused terrorist Liam Alexander Hall from being identified was lifted in court on Tuesday.
Caddies said it has been in contact with Hall and is “aware some people have made contact and is monitoring the situation.”
He urged the public to be aware of libel laws when posting online and the risks of misidentifying a One Nation candidate currently before the courts.
“We know some people will jump to conclusions based on Google searches,” he said.
“Our candidate, Liam, is a good member of the community and does not deserve any negative attention just because he has the same first and last name as someone else.”
Hall won 8.4 percent of the primary vote in the 2025 state election, losing to Labor Secretary Paul Papalia.
Caddies condemned the alleged terrorist attack on Invasion Day protesters and said violence from any segment of politics or any belief system should never be accepted in Australia.
On Tuesday, WA Premier Roger Cook, Opposition Leader Basil Zempilas and National Party leader Shane Love tabled a motion condemning the Invasion Day attack, which is the first order of business when parliament returns for 2026.
“I’m so grateful to whatever stopped the bomb blast, grateful to be able to stand here with the tremendous privilege of contemplation rather than the devastation of grief despite the world around us,” Cook said.
Zempilas said everyone has the right to peacefully assemble and peacefully protest.
“It’s part of who we are as Australians and it’s a value we hold dear. We should all always fight for it,” he said.
Warwick man Liam Alexander Hall, 32, is accused of building a device allegedly designed to explode and throwing it from a terrace balcony into the crowd at Forrest Place as they marched to protest the date of Australia Day.
Hall was arrested that day and charged with intent to harm and making an explosive device with questionable intentions, while authorities charged him with participating in a terrorist act for another nine days; this was the first charge of its kind in Western Australian history.
Start your day with a summary of the day’s most important and interesting stories, analysis and insights. Sign up for our Morning Edition newsletter.
Holly Thompson is a journalist at WAtoday specializing in education and the environment.Connect with: X or email.
