Simon Birmingham (SA, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Foreign Affairs) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

by leave—I move:

That the Senate—

(a) notes that the slogan "from the river to the sea, Palestine will be free" opposes Israel's right to exist, and is frequently used by those who seek to intimidate Jewish Australians via acts of antisemitism;

(b) welcomes Prime Minister Albanese agreeing with comments from former Defence Department Secretary Dennis Richardson calling the slogan "a very violent statement" which could "easily flow into actions of violence against communities in our own country";

(c) agrees with Prime Minister Albanese that "it is a slogan that calls for opposition to a two-state solution", and that "those people chanting, they're saying that one state should be Palestine";

(d) concurs with Prime Minister Albanese's statements in relation to recent university protests that "it's important that there be respectful debate in this country and what we're seeing at the moment… what is hatred, what is ignorance, what is divisive…and it doesn't have a place"; and

(e) calls on all senators to engage in debates and commentary respectfully, and to refrain from inflammatory and divisive comments, both inside and outside the chamber at all times.

This motion notes that the slogan, 'From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free,' opposes Israel's right to exist and is frequently used by those who seek to intimidate Jewish Australians via acts of antisemitism. This motion also welcomes Prime Minister Albanese agreeing with comments from former Secretary of the Department of Defence Dennis Richardson calling the slogan 'a very violent statement which could easily flow into actions of violence against communities in our country'. He further agrees with Prime Minister Albanese that it is 'a slogan that calls for opposition to a two-state solution' and that 'those people chanting are saying that one state should be Palestine'. It concurs with Prime Minister Albanese's statements in relation to recent university protests:

It's important that there be respectful debate in this country and what we are seeing at the moment … what is hatred, what is ignorance, what is divisive, and it doesn't have a place.

Lastly, this motion—as the Senate has done before—calls upon all senators to engage in debates and commentary respectfully and to refrain from inflammatory and divisive comments both inside and outside the chamber at all times. The conflict in the Middle East has unacceptably infected nations around the world, including, tragically, our own. The actions of some have created division. They have fuelled hatred, and they have spurred a most horrific rise in antisemitism. Antisemitism is one of the most ancient forms of hatred. It corrodes societies. As we witnessed during the Holocaust, with the deliberate killing of some six million Jews, when antisemitism is left unchecked, it can result in the most heinous of outcomes. Antisemitism manifests itself in many ways—

including the chanting of the slogan being said in the chamber right now.

Sue Lines (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Resume your seat, Senator Birmingham. This is a divisive debate, like many debates in this place. There is to be silence. Senator Birmingham is entitled to put his motion in silence and that is what we will have. I remind senators that we are now at 12.15, which is the hard marker, as you know, but I understand that we will go beyond that by leave.

Simon Birmingham (SA, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Foreign Affairs) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Antisemitism manifests itself in many ways. Attacks are often made via expressions of hatred, via threats, via intimidation. These include the use of chants and phrases like calls for intifada and the chant 'from the river to the sea'. We have seen in our country, as in far too many other places around the world, the increasing use of these chants and phrases. Let us be very clear: they call for violence and they stand against the existence of the state of Israel.

Sue Lines (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Senator Thorpe, if you continue, I will withdraw the call from you. I've asked you to be quiet. I have asked for respectful silence in a chamber. I appreciate there are different views. There are many opportunities for you in this place to put your view, not now.

Simon Birmingham (SA, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Foreign Affairs) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Such chants and phrases have no place in the type of political debate we should wish to see in our country, nor in the expression of free will that we should encourage and enable in our country. They have no place because of the way in which they are used to encourage division, to inflame hatred, and through acts of antisemitism.

We should, we must, stand against antisemitism in all of its forms. That includes the requirement to stand against the use of language that fuels, drives and underpins antisemitism. The coalition is very clear in our position in relation to this, and we have been very clear since the horrific attacks of 7 October, that the rise in antisemitism has been one of the most profound and concerning aspects of the reaction to those attacks and to the consequential war that has been undertaken.

Tragically, we saw antisemitic acts within hours of the 7 October attacks. We saw them on the steps of the Sydney Opera House. We've seen them subsequently in motorcades and protests deliberately targeting suburbs known to have higher Jewish populations, deliberately targeting places of worship and congregation. These are deliberate acts to intimidate Jewish Australians.

Sue Lines (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Sorry, Senator Birmingham. I am very reluctant to interrupt the opposition leader when he is on his feet. I called for silence. That goes for every single senator in this place. If you can't hold your silence, I'd ask you to respectfully leave the chamber.

Simon Birmingham (SA, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Foreign Affairs) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

These have been deliberate acts of intimidation against Jewish Australians. They have been deliberate acts of antisemitism. They have been acts that have put a stain upon our nation and our nation's reputation for inclusivity and tolerance and for being a nation that stands strongly against antisemitism.

We should have seen stronger leadership. We should have seen more forceful responses to these acts as they came. Had we seen that in the early days, perhaps we could have avoided some of the consequential impacts in the months that followed. We have seen not just a rise in protests—calling for peace or ceasefire or expressing a view about the actions of the Israeli government—but also a continuous rise in antisemitism in the targeting of Jewish Australians. The impact of that is that there are too many Australians of Jewish background who now go about their lives in Australia in a state of fear. They fear for their safety. They fear for the safety of their communities. They fear congregating in their synagogues. They fear for their children when they wear their school uniforms going to or from their schools. Such fear should have no existence in our country—no place, tolerance or acceptance. It should not exist at all. The fact that it does requires and demands the strongest possible action and leadership.

The phrases I've highlighted today are ones that have not just been uttered in protests. They've not just been uttered in rallies. They've not just been uttered in the types of unacceptable gatherings—they're calling them protests—at universities around the country or in other places. But, indeed, 'from the river to the sea' has been accepted and even said by members of the government. That is why we are very clear in putting this motion to the Senate, supporting and highlighting the responses the Prime Minister has given. We wish he had given these responses proactively, not reactively. We wish that he would show leadership in responding and dealing to the use of such phrases that fuel and drive antisemitism. But that leadership has been lacking.

We call on the Prime Minister to take appropriate action and ensure members of his government and his party do not act in ways and repeat phrases that incite and fuel hatred or antisemitism or are used by those who incite and fuel hatred or antisemitism. It is totally unacceptable for Mr Albanese to escape scrutiny or to evade responsibility for the use of such phrases and actions. To say that he hasn't spoken about or acted upon such use is a failure of leadership. Mr Albanese, consistent with what he has said publicly, should act in relation to the use of such phrases.

Ultimately, as we have been clear, we call on all senators to engage in debates and commentary respectfully. The Senate has said this before, and it is sad that we must say it again. But we say it because it is critical that all of us think about our responsibility to ensure that we act in ways that give all Australians the right to feel safe. Right now, Jewish Australians do not. The government needs to take stronger action and Mr Albanese needs to show greater leadership to ensure that they do.

Penny Wong (SA, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Foreign Affairs) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

This government represents the Australian community more completely than any government in this country's history. More than half of our government are women, and we have more First Nations members than any government that has preceded us. We have members of parliament from many different countries, with ancestries from many different cultures. We have members of many different faiths: Christianity, Judaism, Islam and Hinduism. We are proud of how much we represent the richness and the diversity of the Australian community, and we are also deeply conscious of the responsibility this brings with it. We do not speak only to one part of the community, nor do we speak only for one part of the community. Ours is a pluralist nation, a nation that welcomes different races, different religions and different views, and we are united by our respect for each other's humanity and for each other's right to live in peace. We are united by respect for one another and our right to live as citizens in this free society.

We all need to acknowledge the trauma on all sides. We all need to respect each other's humanity and to come together as peacemakers have done throughout history. We all need to be peacemakers. We gain nothing by reproducing the conflict here, by talking past each other, by shouting each other down and by insisting on respective absolutes. It is not acceptable for anyone in this country to blame others in this country for the actions of others overseas. We stand against discrimination in all its forms. We stand against hate speech and prejudice. I stand against prejudice, discrimination and hate speech, and I always have. People might recall a bipartisan motion moved by former senator Cormann and me, which we drafted, calling out Fraser Anning for his appalling first speech where he referenced the 'final solution'. People might recall the Labor Party in opposition applauding former senator Brandis in response to an event in this chamber which was targeting the Muslim community and the Muslim faith. We have been consistent in our position against antisemitism, against all forms of hate speech and against Islamophobia.

Senator Birmingham talks about—and he is right to raise this—how people are feeling. I would refer back to what I said when we announced our vote in support of a two-state solution at the UN. I sought to address the Jewish community directly. I said:

Now I want to make some remarks directly to the Australian Jewish community. I understand that the Australian Jewish community are feeling distressed and isolated. I want to say, you are valued members of our community. You have a right to be safe. You have a right to feel safe. Anti-semitism has no place anywhere. I stand against it. We all must stand against it.

Similarly we have seen in this chamber and beyond the distress that so many Australians feel at what we are seeing in Gaza.

In respect of the issues that have been raised, our position is clear. We call for a humanitarian ceasefire, enabling the immediate release of hostages and humanitarian aid to flow. We call for the release of hostages. We have been clear about our objections to an Israeli ground offensive into Rafah. We have called for Israel to comply with the binding orders of the International Court of Justice, including to enable the provision of basic services and humanitarian assistance at scale. We have been clear about our position on BDS. We do not support BDS. We've been clear about our position on weapons. Australia has not supplied weapons to Israel since this conflict began or in the last five years. But most of all we want to do what we can to break the cycle of violence. We want a two-state solution. The phrase 'From the river to the sea' is not consistent with a two-state solution. And it is that solution which is needed for the peace and security of Palestinians and Israelis alike.

Colleagues, Australia is not a central player in the Middle East, but we are a respected voice, and we use our voice to advocate for a humanitarian ceasefire, for the release of hostages and for a two-state solution, including by using our vote at the United Nations to add international momentum for a two-state solution. With that, I move:

That the question be now put.

Question agreed to.

Sue Lines (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The question is that the motion as moved by Senator Birmingham be agreed to.

Jordon Steele-John (WA, Australian Greens) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I seek leave to make a two-minute statement in relation to the previous vote.

Leave granted.

In relation to the previous vote, I wish to place on the record the principles which guide the Australian Greens in relation to all issues connected with justice and human rights for and in Palestine and Israel. We do so grounded in an understanding that the State of Israel continues to deny the right of self-determination to Palestinians and to dispossess them of their land.

We aim to rectify this injustice in ways that allow both Palestinians and Israelis to live in peace, security and equality, exercising self-determination, as described by the UN charter. We recognise the State of Israel's ongoing illegal occupation of Palestinian territories, and the expropriation of Palestinian land and water is illegal and must be opposed. We call on, and have always called on, all parties to abide by international law, and we have recognised the reality that the policies of the State of Israel are increasingly rendering a two-state solution unachievable.

In this work we have opposed all forms of racism, religious or cultural intolerance and discrimination in Australia and internationally. We have recognised that Palestinians in the State of Israel are subject to apartheid, while also recognising that there is, within Australia and across the world, a rise of antisemitism and Islamophobia that must be called out and that must be opposed, and that the attempt to frame criticism of the State of Israel's policies as antisemitic is utterly inappropriate. We do all of this while advocating peaceful and non-violent solutions. (Time expired.)