Minns vows "massive" police response to Sydney Herzog protest
Malaysian government urged to seek Israeli President's extradition as Herzog lands in Australia
Sydney is bracing for the start of Israeli President Isaac Herzog’s Australian tour today, with NSW Premier Chris Minns flagging a “massive” police crackdown on a planned protest outside Sydney Town Hall.
Herzog arrives in the country today for a five-day diplomatic visit, with Australian authorities resisting calls for Herzog to answer charges of inciting genocide.
On Friday, NSW Police commissioner Mal Lanyon extended a Public Assembly Restriction Declaration (PARD) covering much of Sydney’s CBD and eastern suburbs, meaning attendees of the Town Hall protest will “not have the protection of the Summary Offences Act with respect to obstructing traffic and pedestrians”.
On Saturday the NSW government also declared Herzog’s visit a “major event”, giving police extra powers to issue move-on orders and directions to protesters.
Speaking at a press conference on Saturday, Minns vowed that “NSW Police will have a massive presence” in the Sydney CBD on Monday afternoon.
“There is an obligation on the NSW government, and I think everybody, to protect mourners, the president of another country, protesters as well as regular Sydneysiders who will just be going about their daily lives on a busy Monday afternoon,” Minns said.
The Palestine Action Group Sydney (PAG), which is organising the protest, is filing an urgent legal challenge to the PARD order this morning, claiming on Sunday that the order was “being used to suppress lawful political protest against the visit of Herzog”.
“These laws are designed to intimidate and deter people from speaking out against war crimes and injustice,” PAG spokesperson Josh Lees said.
“Minns cannot stop the people, and he will not succeed.”
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Protests are also set to take place in every state and territory capital today, as well as many regional centres.
Activist group Legal Observers NSW have urged protest attendees to be aware of their rights and obligations when interacting with police.
“Police talk to people at protests to gather information that could be used to surveil or criminalise protest-goers and organisers,” the group said in January.
“Be careful when speaking to police, even if they approach you in a casual manner and ‘just want to have a chat’.”
Malaysian government urged to issue extradition request
Pressure on Australia to arrest Herzog while he is in the country is growing, with Malaysian and Australian human rights lawyers urging the Malaysian government to seek Herzog’s arrest and extradition.
Malaysian human rights organisation CENTHRA and their Australian legal representatives, Sydney law firm Zaydan Lawyers, contend that such a request would “create a jurisdictional trigger that could compel action in any country where Herzog may travel”, placing pressure on the Australian government to place Herzog under arrest.
The complainants point to a United Nations Commission of Inquiry in September which found that Herzog incited genocide in October 2023 when he claimed that “an entire nation out there [in Gaza]... is responsible” for the October 7 attack on Israel. They also cite the 1998 arrest of former Chilean dictator Augusto Pinochet in London in accordance with an arrest warrant issued in Spain, establishing the international legal precedent that “no office confers immunity for international crimes”.
“By pursuing extradition, Malaysia would reaffirm that principle and help close the gap between international law and enforcement,” CENTHRA chair Azril Mohd Amin said.
The Malaysian filing follows Australian authorities refusing a request by Jewish and Muslim peak bodies to open an investigation into whether Herzog’s remarks breach Australian law. A letter of complaint filed with the Department of Foreign Affairs by high-profile KC Robert Richter in January claimed that Herzog’s presence in the country “would be highly inflammatory, risking further division within the Australian community and potentially provoking unrest or violence”.
That complaint “establishes the credible basis for prosecution of President Herzog,” said Zaydan Lawyers principal lawyer and Watermelon Defence Fund founder Bernadette Zaydan. “Malaysia now has the opportunity and legal authority to trigger the process internationally by filing an extradition request.”
“This is how impunity for international crimes is practically challenged: through cross-border legal cooperation.”
Malaysia is a vocal critic of Israel in international diplomatic and legal forums. In September, Malaysian prime minister Anwar Ibrahim called on states to take “strong punitive measures” against Israel, including by cutting diplomatic and trade ties. Ibrahim barred Israeli-flagged ships from docking in Malaysian ports in December 2023.
Malaysia’s Australian High Commission and Ministry of Foreign Affairs have been contacted for comment.
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Great when a govt uses the repressive state apparatus against its own people (at their expense) to support a genocidal thug and his thug sidekicks.
Here we are. Marshalling the power of the state to protect those complicit in genocide against people exercise their right to protest.