Victorian premier excludes Jewish Council from 'anti-hate' taskforce
Jacinta Allan held the first meeting of the new anti-hate taskforce, and invited only pro-Israel groups
The Jewish Council of Australia (JCA) was a notable absentee from the first meeting of Victoria's new 'anti-hate' taskforce convened by the state Labor premier, Jacinta Allan.
In a statement on Monday announcing the new taskforce, Allan said she would "invite representatives of Melbourne’s Jewish community to participate in this meeting, so their voice is heard from the outset".
The meeting was held, according to a follow-up statement issued by the premier's office on Tuesday, but not all Jewish groups were present. The statement noted the attendance of various pro-Israel groups, including "Jeremy Leibler, President of the Zionist Federation of Australia, Philip Zajac, President of the Jewish Community Council of Victoria and Elyse Schachna, President of Zionism Victoria".
This is despite JCA – a Jewish community voice that is critical of Israel and Zionism – sending a letter on Monday, and obtained by Deepcut, requesting its inclusion. The letter highlighted JCA's "expertise in the fields of Jewish history, human rights law, public policy, politics and law reform". It added that "over 1000 Jewish people in Australia (and growing) have signed on to our core principles. We run social, political and religious events for the Jewish community in Victoria, and we support a large number of ongoing Jewish discussion groups."
JCA received no response from the premier's office.
"We are deeply concerned that only pro-Israel Jewish groups have been invited to consult with the State Government," Ohad Kozminsky, an executive member at JCA, said.
"By excluding alternative Jewish voices from the meeting, the State Government is actively conflating Jewish religious identity with support for Israel and Zionist ideology," he told Deepcut, adding that "the identification of Jews with Israel risks fomenting antisemitism and division in the community".
JCA has since launched an online petition that has, as of writing, garnered 700 signatures from the Jewish community calling on the premier to “stop exploiting antisemitic incidents experienced by our communities … to push anti-democratic laws”.
Antisemitic or anti-Israel incidents?
Three incidents occurred in Melbourne last weekend that mainstream media – from the ABC to rightwing outlet The Australian – framed unquestioningly as antisemitic. But what actually occurred, and were these incidents connected?
The primary incident of concern was an arson attack at the East Melbourne Hebrew Congregation on Friday evening while worshippers were present inside. No injuries were reported, and Victoria Police have charged 34-year-old Angelo Loras, who was allegedly captured on CCTV footage at the time of the attack.
Michael Shaik, spokesperson for Free Palestine Melbourne, said Loras was not known to the pro-Palestine movement.
"I personally did not know who Angelo Loras was until I looked him up just now. To the best of my knowledge, he has never had any association with Free Palestine Melbourne," Shaik told Deepcut. Loras's Instagram bio mentions him as living in Sydney.
Separately on Friday evening, a protest of roughly 20 individuals took place at Miznon restaurant in Melbourne's CBD, which is owned by the Israeli restaurateur, Shahar Segal.
Segal also worked as spokesperson for the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF), a US- and Israeli-backed aid operation in Gaza that has been condemned by the UN and NGOs worldwide. Since the scheme began, UNRWA reports Israeli forces have slaughtered at least 613 Palestinians seeking aid.
UNRWA's head, Philippe Lazzarini, said the aid operation "provides nothing but starvation and gunfire to the people of Gaza". More than 130 global NGOs have issued a joint statement demanding "an immediate end to Israel's deadly distribution scheme, a return to UN-led coordination, and the lifting of the brutal blockade on Gaza".
Shortly following the protest in Melbourne, Segal announced he was parting ways with GHF – a move that, Shaik says, vindicates the protest efforts.
"We welcome his decision and congratulate the protestors on the success of their non-violent direct action," he said.
"If the Australian government took its obligations to uphold the Genocide Convention seriously, such actions would not be necessary, but when governments fail it is up to the people to do what’s right," he added.
A third incident early Saturday morning saw three cars vandalised in front of arms manufacturer, Lovitt Technologies. In July 2023, Lovitt Technologies was awarded $1.5 million in taxpayer money "to buy a next generation machining centre to secure more work on the global F-35 Program". Lovitt Technologies has been a key Australian player in the manufacturing of parts for the F-35 fighter jet since 2013. The Israeli air force possesses 45 F-35 jets as part of its fleet, which it has used in what UN experts and human rights groups say is a genocide in Gaza.
The Allan government's response to these incidents has raised concerns that it is weaponising antisemitism to target free speech when it comes to Israel.
"The State Government is actively identifying the horrifying attempted arson at East Melbourne Hebrew Congregation with the longstanding political movement that is protesting the genocide being conducted by Israel against the people of Palestine," Kozminsky said.
"This movement actively and consistently distinguishes between criticism of Israel and antisemitism, and it is irresponsible to ignore this," he added.
Shaik also noted "how mendacious claims of antisemitism are being weaponised around Australia to strike at the very foundations of Australia’s freedoms and democracy".
Prioritising pro-Israeli concerns over marginalised groups
On the same weekend, two LGBTQ+ venues in Melbourne were defaced with homophobic graffiti. No statement was issued by the Allan government, however, nor were any LGBTQ+ representatives invited to the anti-hate taskforce.
Odus Moore, a queer TikTok influencer and community advocate in Melbourne, directed a video to the premier and the anti-hate taskforce. "We have queer men being beaten up, robbed, having our homes invaded, and being targeted through Grindr. And now we're having our safe spaces threatened with homophobic acts of violence ... Where's the media about this?"
Deepcut asked the premier's office about "concerns that it is prioritising the concerns of pro-Israel groups while overlooking the safety of marginalised communities", along with other questions. The premier has yet to respond.
Shaik accused the anti-hate taskforce of a "racist framing". He pointed to two incidents – a neo-Nazi march last October that disrupted a refugee protest with a large Tamil contingent, and an attack on two Muslim women eating lunch at a Melbourne shopping centre in February – as examples of the Allan government's double standards.
"Free Palestine Melbourne deplores the attack on the synagogue, but we cannot ignore the racist framing of this anti-hate taskforce, the sole purpose of which is to fight antisemitism. It’s an insult to all the other communities in Victoria who have been vilified by politicians and sections of the mass media for decades," he said.
Victorian premier risks making matters worse
Kozminsky warns that the Allan government's current approach "risks exacerbating antisemitism, Islamophobia, anti-Palestinian racism and anti-Arab racism – which is precisely the opposite of what the State Government should be doing".
"Law and order measures cannot counter the real scourge of racism in our community, they can only exacerbate it by pitting communities against one another and shutting down conversation and education," he said. Kozminsky pointed to the National Anti-Racism Framework released by the Australian Human Rights Commission last November that provides guidance on how to effectively combat racism.
The Framework calls on the federal government to establish a "National Anti-Racism Taskforce" and offers 63 recommendations for a "whole of society approach to eliminating racism". Neither the federal nor Victorian governments have implemented the Framework. Victoria's 'anti-hate' taskforce suggests the state government prefers a policing approach that, given its exclusion of the JCA, appears most responsive to the concerns of pro-Israel groups.
"The State Government needs to recognise that all forms of racism are connected, and that racism should be combated in a coordinated way through education, collaboration between communities, and responsible reporting," Kozminsky said.
In other news, things that caught my eye in West Asia:
Gaza:
As Steve Witkoff, the US Middle East envoy, spoke of "an opportunity to finally get a peace deal", atrocities continued on the ground in Gaza. Israeli forces killed another 95 Palestinians as Benjamin Netanyahu – who is wanted by the ICC on war crimes charges – and Donald Trump held two meetings to discuss a potential ceasefire.
Ceasefire talks appear to be focused on the redeployment of Israeli forces currently in Gaza. The Israeli foreign minister, Israel Katz, has called for the forced relocation of 600,000 Palestinians into a "humanitarian city" on the ruins of Rafah in southern Gaza, where they will not be allowed to leave. In other words, a concentration camp. Hamas, however, is reportedly insisting Israeli forces withdraw in line with its initial withdrawal during the last ceasefire at the beginning of the year.
Lebanon:
Tom Barrack, the US special envoy, was again in Lebanon as part of a pressure campaign to disarm Hezbollah. There were concerns that a failure of the Lebanese government to act on Hezbollah would prompt a resumption of Israeli aggression on the country. But Barrack left Lebanon optimistic, saying "We just had an amazingly interesting and satisfactory meeting". Nawaf Salam, the Lebanese PM, also added to the positive vibe, saying "the atmosphere is good" following his meeting with Barrack. For his part, Hezbollah leader Naim Qassem rejected disarming, saying it would weaken Lebanon.
The Lebanese government appears to have agreed to a timeline to disarm Hezbollah south of the Litani River and move heavy military equipment north of the river, effectively leaving south Lebanon demilitarised in the face of a nuclear-armed rogue state. The Lebanese government's defence strategy appears to be to limit its own defence capabilities while placing its trust in the Trump administration to pressure Israel to withdraw from the positions it still occupies in south Lebanon and cease attacking the country.
Those attacks continued nonetheless, with Israel killing three people in a strike in Zgharta in Lebanon's north. Israel claims to have assassinated a key Hamas official, which Hamas denies.
Syria:
Syria's self-appointed president, Ahmad al-Sharaa, reportedly held talks with the Israeli national security advisor, Tzachi Hanegbi, in Abu Dhabi. This comes as Israel has expanded its presence in Syria with the construction of six new bases. Israel's incursions into southern Syria have destroyed 15 homes and displaced 6,000 people, according to Middle East Monitor.
Yesterday's terrorist can today become America's new friend – all it has to do is align itself with Israel. That appears to be the message coming out of Washington as it removed Hayat Tahrir al-Sham – a rebranded al-Qaeda group headed by Sharaa – from its terror list. Meanwhile, the UK added a pro-Palestine protest group, Palestine Action, to its terror list and arrested 29 individuals, including an 83-year-old woman for holding a sign that read, "I oppose genocide. I support Palestine Action."
Iran:
The US reportedly spent as much as US$1.215 billion in deploying its Terminal High Altitude Area Defence (THAAD) anti-missile system in support of Israel's air defence during its 12-day war with Iran.
Meanwhile, Iran is said to have received surface-to-air missiles from China as it seeks to restore its defences, Arab officials told the Middle East Eye.