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Australian PM Scott Morrison casually flipped off during a speech

Australian PM Scott Morrison casually flipped off during a speech
Instagram/@s**tadelaide/Joel Carrett/AP

The prime minister of Australia Scott Morrison found himself in a bizarre situation as a man help up his middle finger in his face as he gave a speech.

The incident took place took place at an event he was attending in South Australia where he was addressing the crowd at the Clare Garden Festival.

What occurred next was totally unexpected as a video posted on an Instagram account run by@justadelaidethings showed a man approach Morrison and put his middle finger up, right in front of his face, before walking off.

The Prime Minister clearly saw the gesture but played it off. He completely ignored what had just happened and carried on with his speech.

It comes as the prime minister’s approval ratings have taken a hit after backlash against his handling of sexual abuse allegations.

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The video, captioned, “Prime Minister ScoMo received a warm welcome at the Clare Garden Festival,” received a mixed reaction online.

Some supported the stranger’s actions, while others called the incident “completely disrespectful”.

One Instagram user wrote: “He [Morrison] treats Australians with no respect. He deserves no respect. Sooner he’s gone the better.”

Others agreed. One person said “I could watch this all day,” while another wrote: “How Australia thinks of you ScoMo.”

Another user referenced the phrase “Je suis Charlie” that was used in France following a shooting at the magazine offices of Charlie Hebdo and that has been adopted by supporters of freedom of speech. They wrote, “Je suis Middle Finger Man”.

Some condemned the actions, as one user commented: “Irrespective of your political persuasion, this is just grubby and completely disrespectful”.

Another said: “Seriously, there are far more civilised ways to vocalise your dislike of a politician. This is just a bogan being untasteful.”

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