The founder of Australia's controversial One Nation party has arrived at court in tears to face electoral fraud charges.
Ms Pauline Hanson, clutching a bunch of flowers and dressed in black, was cheered by a small group of elderly supporters as she arrived at the Brisbane District Court today.
She and party co-founder Mr David Ettridge have pleaded not guilty to charges relating to One Nation's 1997 registration as a political party.
The former fish and chip shop owner is accused of falsely claiming almost £200,000 sterling in electoral funds used to pay for the campaigns of 11 members of parliament elected to the Queensland state parliament.
A court ruled in 1999 that One Nation used supporters who were not fully paid members to fraudulently register the party in her home state of Queensland.
Her trial is expected to last up to 40 days.
Ms Hanson inflamed racist sentiment in Australia and damaged the nation's standing in Asia in the late 1990s after she warned in her maiden speech as an independent MP in the national parliament that Australia was in danger of being "swamped by Asians".
She went on to form One Nation, which rode a groundswell of support for her opposition to Asian immigration and welfare for Aborigines, and won a million votes in a 1998 election.
But Ms Hanson lost her seat in the same poll and in 2002 quit the party, which has since been plagued by infighting.