Jacinta Nampijinpa Price (NT, Country Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Indigenous Australians) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I rise to continue to speak to the Commission of Inquiry into Antisemitism at Australian Universities Bill 2024 (No. 2). I last rose to speak on this private senator's bill in July 2024. At that time, I spoke about the fact that history gives us a clear map of where things can go. History tells us the inevitable result of failing to stamp out antisemitism and condemn it in the strongest terms. I said that if we fail to stand up then we are not learning from history. Since I said those words, the Albanese government have had months to learn and to take meaningful action, yet they have not. Since then, we have seen antisemitic ideologies spill over into antisemitic violence right across this country. In the last three months alone, we have seen cars set on fire, buildings and cars covered in antisemitic graffiti, synagogues defaced with antisemitic rhetoric, people's homes and properties being sprayed with graffiti and terrorist symbols, and a childcare centre and synagogue being set on fire. We also saw the preparation of what could have been one of the most catastrophic attacks of terror in this country. All the incidents were pointing towards Jewish people here in Australia as the targets.

Those were only the events of the last three months. It is deplorable behaviour. It is absolutely no wonder that Jews in Australia now live in fear. It's no wonder that Jews in Australia no longer feel like this is a country where they are safe and protected. The places where any person, any Australian, deserves to feel they're most safe and protected are their homes, their places of worship and the places where they leave their children while they go to work. The targeting of these places sends a clear message—a message of terror. It should never be happening in our democratic, free, western nation of Australia.

Sometimes I wonder if we can ever truly come back from this or if things have gone too far. One of the worst parts of the situation that we find ourselves in now is that I believe it was largely preventable. The fact is that people only do what they know they can get away with, and the Albanese Labor government's lack of action and weak leadership has told people that they can get away with this kind of behaviour.

Anthony Albanese left a glaringly large question mark over our country's loyalty to and solidarity with the State of Israel. He left a question mark over the value and the worth of Jewish people in Australia by failing to protect them from this national crisis. He was ambiguous. He refused to take a strong position. He walked both sides of the street on an issue that left no room for that. Then we had our Minister for Education, Mr Clare, who had the audacity to suggest that terrorist slogans like 'from the river to the sea' mean different things to different people. That is the man who is in charge of our educational institutions at a national level in this country. That ambiguity from the Prime Minister and his government allowed people in the community to know that they could get away with things.

Little by little the hatred grew and became more pronounced. People became unashamed of their antisemitic views, and there's no question that what went on in our educational institutions following the October 7 attacks was a significant factor in the crisis of antisemitism we are now trying to deal with. We had student protests that defied orders and threatened the safety of their fellow Jewish students on university campuses mere weeks after the attacks of October 7. Those protests, against alleged genocide by Israel, were going on when hostages had not yet been returned, when loved ones were still to be found or their fates known. It was allowed to fester, and now we are seeing and hearing of university faculty members expressing antisemitic views—the ones we leave our young people with to educate, not to indoctrinate with hatred. This is why urgent and serious action must be taken.

The Albanese government has not done enough to combat antisemitism in this country, and that is why I wholeheartedly support this bill. We must launch an inquiry into antisemitism at Australian universities because these institutions wield enormous power. They shape the thinking, the attitudes and the behaviour of the next generation, and if we don't have this inquiry then the next generation is on a fast track to learning hatred that will lead to destruction. Again, the Prime Minister has utterly failed Jews in Australia. Opposition leader Peter Dutton wrote to Mr Albanese in May last year asking that he establish this inquiry as a matter of urgency, and one has to wonder how different the situation might be if the Prime Minister had actually agreed to hold the inquiry back then.

We need a judicial inquiry because it is the most authoritative form of inquiry. For a start, it would be independently led. It would also have full investigative powers and would be assisted by skilled cross-examiners. It would be able to hear evidence confidentially without witnesses having to live in fear of retaliation—and this is an incredibly important point. If Jews in Australia are becoming more reluctant to even attend their places of education or their workplaces simply because they exist then why on earth would we expect them to feel comfortable testifying about antisemitic hatred in a public forum? The power of a commissioner to take evidence in confidential sessions is absolutely necessary. The leadership of this country and the Albanese government have already betrayed the Jews in Australia. That is why the coalition must and will do everything we can to support Jews in this country including by giving them the confidence to make the truth known.

Further, the inquiry that this bill would establish would differ in important ways from the Albanese government's racism study being conducted by the Australian Human Rights Commission. That study is absolutely inadequate if it is going to go any way to improving or stamping out the prevalence of antisemitism on campuses. It is not specifically investigating antisemitism; it is being run by an organisation which has failed to condemn the Hamas terror attack. It does not have the independence, powers or personnel to adequately deal with campus antisemitism. The Jewish community does not have any faith in the Australian Human Rights Commission. Many Jewish peak bodies were opposed to the suggestion of the Human Rights Commission leading an inquiry into antisemitism. The groups were, however, in favour of an independent judicial inquiry, such as the one that this bill would establish.

We must remind ourselves of the gravity of what we are dealing with here. As I said before, the issue of antisemitism is not one that anyone can afford to be on the fence about. This is not about a few instances of racism, which would be bad enough; this is a situation of people openly and publicly advocating for Israel to be wiped from the face of the earth. This is terror. Our response to antisemitism on university campuses must be swift, strong and comprehensive. It's caused too much destruction already and it demands our full attention. We must prove that as a nation we stand with the Jews who live here. Jewish Australians, we stand with you. We must prove, through action, not words, that we are committed to their protection and that we will learn from history and never, never, ever let it be repeated.

Linda Reynolds (WA, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I, too, rise to speak on the Commission of Inquiry into Antisemitism at Australian Universities Bill 2024, and I do so with a very heavy heart. I find it almost inconceivable that in this day and age this bill is necessary. I commend my colleague Senator Henderson for her leadership in this area. I participated in the hearings of this bill, and I was utterly dismayed to hear some of the responses of the chancellors, but particularly the Australian Human Rights Commission, who were completely blind to this most ancient and wicked form of discrimination.

I start by making this observation—that there can never be security or safety in appeasement, where there is appeasement of dictators or antisemites or others who wish others harm. There is no peace and there is no security in appeasement. In fact, I have before quoted Winston Churchill, who in 1940 observed that—this is appeasers:

Each one hopes that if he feeds the crocodile enough, the crocodile will eat him last. All of them hope that the storm will pass before their time comes to be devoured.

In recent years, it's been shortened to 'An appeaser is one who feeds the crocodile hoping it will eat him last.' Sadly and almost unbelievably, today in our nation this is what we are now getting from our Prime Minister. Whether it is standing up with our democratic allies and friends to fight back against dictators who hate us, who hate democracy, and who have formed an axis of evil to support each other's activities—Russia in the Ukraine. Remember, a decade ago, the West appeased him, Putin, and what did he do? He was emboldened by it and came back for more, and much more, of Ukraine.

Today, here in Australia we are witnessing the most extraordinary acts of hate against Jewish Australians. Not only are we seeing it across the nation; we are now seeing it—and arguably it started—in our universities with the radicalisation of our students and the complete failure of leadership by a number of vice-chancellors, who turned to mush in the face of this. Whether ideologically it wasn't their flavour or whether they were just afraid, they appeased the voices of hate and hatred and the accompanying acts. So, as the university students return for this academic year, everybody in our universities has the right to be safe.

I had the great privilege of attending the Holocaust 80th commemorative service in Perth. I thank and commend the Australian Jewish community. It was a most powerful service. Both the Prime Minister and the Leader of the Opposition attended. Sadly, it looked like the Prime Minister was in witness protection, flanked and protected by the Premier of Western Australia, but I was so proud to see so many Liberal colleagues there, along with the Leader of the Opposition.

Amongst the many moving speeches, we heard from Western Australian students about the impact that this has had on their mental health, on their sense of security, on their sense of identity here in Australia.

The director of education at the Holocaust Institute of Western Australia, Judith Lawrence, made an astonishing speech, and she's given me permission to read some of what she said. I, in my own words, can't do justice to what she said. She said: 'How was the Holocaust humanly possible? The question haunts us still. The Holocaust was not the product of one moment, nor of one man. It was the result of a world that allowed hatred to take root unchecked until it reached its most horrific expression. It started small. Words, propaganda, exclusion, discrimination, violence, extermination—it was gradual until it was sudden.' To pause there, all of those things, bar the ultimate expression of that in terms of extermination, are things that, until now, for 18 months or more, have gone unchecked. And, as she said, it was gradual until it was sudden.

She said, as we reflected on this year's theme, which was for a better future: 'As Australians, we all ask ourselves: what have we learnt from history? Change does not happen overnight. It is gradual, insignificant in a single act but transformative over time'—and that is, sadly, exactly what we are seeing here in Australia today—'with the small but powerful consistent choices we make daily to challenge hate, to open conversations and to foster understanding.' We on this side of the chamber understand that, but we need everybody in this chamber to stand up, to call it out and to stamp out hate.

Judith Lawrence also said this: 'Eighty years later, the lessons of the Holocaust remain painfully relevant. Here in Australia we are witnessing a rise in blatant antisemitism. Swastikas smeared publicly, verbal attacks on Jewish individuals, doxxing of the arts community—it is gradual until it is sudden. The Adass synagogue in Melbourne burnt to the ground, firebombed cars and daycare centres in Sydney, attacks on private homes, violent rhetoric and intimidation of Jewish communities—it is gradual until it is sudden.'

She made this observation, which, sadly, is also very true: 'The Holocaust was not an aberration in history; it was a warning. And, since then, as we have seen, there have been far too many other genocides over the past 80 years. The patterns of hatred that led to Auschwitz did not begin in 1933, nor did they end in 1945.' As she said, the antisemitism we see today is not new, but it has morphed. The same deeply ingrained Jew hate has been repackaged through modern narratives—and, I would also add, through social media—and adapted to fit contemporary political and ideological movements. But today the same rhetoric of dehumanisation, of blood libels, of conspiracy theories and of scapegoating is being used against Jews globally. It is an indication of broader societal decay. The failure to combat it undermines our social cohesion, and, sadly, that is very true today.

I will finish with these comments by Ms Lawrence: 'If we are to truly create a better future, we must recognise these patterns of hate and refuse to allow history to repeat itself. The Holocaust teaches us what happens when prejudice is left unchecked, when silence allows bigotry to grow, and when moral leadership fails to take a stand.' Again, as I said, I find it inconceivable that here in Australia today these attacks, this violence, this antisemitism has been allowed to grow unchecked by state and federal governments.

What does that mean? It means that somehow we need to find a way to come together in this chamber, in this place and in this nation to say that all Australians, regardless of religion or background, have the right to be safe in this nation—safe from hatred, freedom from ancient enmities repackaged. The fact is that today we are facing challenges in this nation that we have not seen since the end of World War II. We have a four-nation axis of dictatorship and authoritarianism that has a single shared enemy, and that is us and democracy. They don't respect compromise. They don't respect appeasement. They exploit it—and exploiting it they are. China, Russia, Iran and North Korea are working together in new ways to support each other's ambitions, and still, as a coalition of democracies, we have been slow to see this, we have been slow to react and, even worse, we have allowed the hatred, the antisemitism and the discord in our nation to grow unchecked. It is like our national leaders in government think that, if they keep feeding the crocodile, they will get eaten last, but the consequences of that in this nation are deadly.

Let's remind ourselves what has been going on at our campuses and what has then been more widely fermenting. Since the shocking attack on 7 October 2023, our Jewish communities have faced one of the most difficult periods in their lives. Holocaust survivors who came to Australia and thought they would be safe have been shocked to discover that they are not. The events of that day, the unprovoked attack, resulted in 1,200 innocent people being murdered, which sent shockwaves around the world, including in Australia. That day of depravity was the greatest loss of Jewish life on a single day in 80 years, since the Holocaust. It awoke and exposed a shocking antisemitic rot in Western democracies, including, sadly, here in Australia. This has resulted in an over 700 per cent increase in antisemitic incidents on Australia's soil since October 2023. Australians have witnessed an unchecked and unprecedented spike in antisemitic activity across our country, in our streets, in our synagogues and outside of people's homes. A synagogue was firebombed in Melbourne. A Jewish daycare centre was firebombed in Sydney. A car was firebombed outside the address of a prominent Jewish leader. Then, of course, a caravan full of explosives was found in suburban Sydney, with a map of prominent Jewish targets, including the Great Synagogue. As we know in this place and as we debated yesterday, had this attack occurred it would have been the most disastrous terrorist attack on Australian soil in history. The list goes on and on. Synagogues are being sprayed with swastika graffiti. People's homes, where they live and have the right like any other Australian to feel safe, have been attacked.

Sadly, in my own home state of Western Australia, just last weekend there were incidents of disgusting antisemitic graffiti sprayed across walls, roads and street signs. According to the Executive Council of Australian Jewry, there were 116 anti-Jewish incidents in Western Australia alone. Our community leaders have been left abandoned and disappointed with the lack of response from the Labor government. The Jewish Community Council of Western Australia Vice President Steve Lieblich said that the weak stance from the government emboldens those hate mongers and agitators who are stirring up the people prepared to take violent action.

In conclusion, as we reflect on the immense loss of six million Jewish lives and countless other minorities during the Holocaust, one of history's darkest periods, unfortunately the lessons of 80 years ago must be relearned and we must find a way to stand together in this place to make sure that it does not happen again.

Hollie Hughes (NSW, Liberal Party, Shadow Assistant Minister for Mental Health and Suicide Prevention) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Just yesterday we saw that the Parliamentary Joint Committee on Human Rights inquiry into antisemitism at Australian universities heard evidence from the vice-chancellor of Macquarie University, who refused to unequivocally agree that a staff member's social media post saying, 'May 2025 be the end of Israel,' was antisemitic. They refused to convey a university position on this matter. If that doesn't prove that this committee is inadequate, I don't know what will.

It is absolutely obscene that we are once again having to have a look at academic grants and have a look at Dr Abdel-Fattah and her behaviour, which has included doxxing Jewish Australians. She has encouraged young children to chant hateful terrorist slogans. She has absolutely demonstrated antisemitism at an Australian university. She encouraged those children at an encampment on Sydney university campus and she has promoted Hamas on her social media accounts. They are a recognised terror group. If anyone, anywhere, any place, was inciting the support of a terror organisation, they would be called out but not at Australian universities and not when it's hatred of the Jews, it would seem. That is a different type of incitement according to many people who sit on the other side of this chamber and in the left-wing halls of academia. Australian universities should be moulding young minds. Instead, this same academic, Dr Abdel-Fattah was just invited to another university. She is up at the Queensland University of Technology for another antisemitism platform. She was there under the guise—and this is where we see the Greens and their rhetoric play out, they do these events under the guise—of fighting racism. They're antiracists, but they are antisemites.

It's about time, certainly, that the Labor government had the guts, the wherewithal—we know the intellectual fortitude is lacking in many of their offices, but perhaps someone with some needs to step up and point out that, when you are inciting hatred, when you are talking about the annihilation of a country, when you are talking about support for recognised terror organisations whose sole mission is the destruction of Israel and the Jewish people, that is antisemitic.

If you don't understand that that is antisemitism, just think about it in terms of the racism that you talk about. If anyone was calling for the destruction of any other race of people based on their religion—say the destruction of all Christianity: 'We want all Christians gone'—that would be seen as antireligious. Say we talked about the destruction of—I'll use my own race—all Caucasians. Sam Kerr may take a note out of this book. It is racist to attack white people. So if someone were to say, 'All white people need to be annihilated,' that would be seen as racist—God forbid I should use another example! Why is the destruction of Jews not antisemitic? Just understand it for what it is. It's what it is.

Universities should be places where young minds are taught to question and to debate. You don't send your kids to university to be indoctrinated. You send your kids to university—and quite often at great expense to families—not to learn basketweaving and gender studies; you hopefully send them to university to learn how to expand their mind, to question, to look at things objectively, to look at different arguments and to be able to present a view or a position on something with a well-put-together argument. Instead, what people are getting at universities now is nothing but an indoctrination. And we know it has always been left-leaning.

I enjoyed my days at university, where I very much never wavered, even after four years. My former university professor commented to me that I was still wearing the pearl earrings that I wore on day one of my university degree and that it showed some strength of character that, within five minutes of turning up to my university, I hadn't adopted the flowy skirts and become a left-wing Marxist but went into university voting Liberal and came out still doing the same.

Unfortunately, young minds can be susceptible. They're looking to fit in, to be part of the culture—the culture that has been allowed to fester at universities across Australia, and particularly at the universities that like to think they're better than all the other universities: the universities of the Group of Eight. They like to think they're a little bit more elite. Yet they have become absolute hotbeds of antisemitism, which is racism. And that has been allowed to continue to grow.

So I am incredibly pleased to be here to speak in support of Senator Henderson's bill, the Commission of Inquiry into Antisemitism at Australian Universities Bill 2024 (No. 2). I think it's the right thing to be done.

I hope that the Labor Party takes a good hard look at what's been happening in our great country, where a community now no longer feels safe, and changes their position and does support this bill. To the Labor Party: you can't move away—one in, all in. There are people in the Labor Party who do understand antisemitism, who do support Israel, and I am sorry that you are having to sit in a party room, in a caucus, that does not support you. I'm sorry that one member in particular, a Jewish member, Josh Burns, has been, quite clearly, hung out to dry by his own party in the way that he has been supported—or, more to the point, not.

So perhaps it's time for a bit of moral courage from those opposite to actually put a bit of pressure on the leadership. The boss is away; he's on a plane up to Townsville. He doesn't want to talk to the Australian people through the parliament today. He's up there. It's convenient timing, some may say, but he's gone up there. The boss is away. Come on! Let's get some of your other guys up there.

I'm sorry, Senator Watt? You? I've lived through floods, and I know how terrible they are. And the flood's still going to be there after today.

Senator Watt thinks he can start these sorts of smears. Just start me, because we're talking about antisemitism and the fact that you and your mob are continuing to play politics with antisemitism. See what the Jewish community says about you. Go and see what the Jewish community says about you and the weakness. I think we all know why the AFP didn't tell the Prime Minister about the caravan with the explosives. You, on that side, cannot be trusted with information to keep Australians safe, because your racist ideology that is antisemitic would bar you.

Karen Grogan (SA, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Senator Hughes, resume your seat. Senator Watt?

Murray Watt (Queensland, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Employment and Workplace Relations) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Senator Hughes has made a number of imputations against various members of the government, and she should withdraw.

Karen Grogan (SA, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Thank you, Senator McKenzie. Your interjection is not required. Senator Hughes, would you please withdraw those comments.

Hollie Hughes (NSW, Liberal Party, Shadow Assistant Minister for Mental Health and Suicide Prevention) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

For the ease of the chamber and for you, Madam Deputy President, I withdraw.

Karen Grogan (SA, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Thank you.

Hollie Hughes (NSW, Liberal Party, Shadow Assistant Minister for Mental Health and Suicide Prevention) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Antisemitism that this government is supporting—because they cannot say 'antisemitism' without putting in antiracism, racism, Islamophobia, 'Let's walk both sides of the street, because God forbid we do anything to upset our voters in south-west Sydney; we've got to protect those, so we'd better not go out in support of Jewish Australians.' Jewish Australians have guards out the front of preschools. It is unbelievable that people are too afraid to identify themselves with a kippah for fear of being attacked in our country. Yet this government stands by, stands idle, refusing to stand up for Jewish Australians, and will pop by a domestic terrorist attack only once the tennis match is over. What a disgrace! What is now very apparent is a break from normal traditions in national security, because the Prime Minister can't be trusted, and his office can't be trusted when it comes to antisemitism.

Karen Grogan (SA, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Senator Hughes, I'll ask you to temper your comments.

Hollie Hughes (NSW, Liberal Party, Shadow Assistant Minister for Mental Health and Suicide Prevention) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Well, I'm sorry; the truth hurts. That's why Chris Minns, who's actually shown some leadership—the Premier of New South Wales—went out and very clearly stated it, when he was briefed. There's not a problem there, in an operational sense. But it's funny that there is over here, and we know why that is. How embarrassing, but how disgraceful, that this is the state of leadership in this country or—as the Jewish Australians know—no leadership in this country.

So I absolutely call on the decent members of the Labor caucus—and I know that's you, Senator Ciccone, Senator Farrell and Senator O'Neill, who are very strong supporters of Israel, who have always stood up for the Jewish community, who have done the right thing—to support this bill. We are seeing antisemitism not only allowed to fester but actively encouraged at universities. It is being actively demonstrated, encouraged and accepted by vice-chancellors at universities that this is an appropriate way for people to behave, that this is freedom of speech. Freedom of speech is not free of consequences. When you support terror organisations—if that is not the point that someone stands up and says no, when is it?

Labor must support this bill if you are to have any face left to the Jewish community. The fact that you all stood in here—I felt sick listening to some of the ridiculous syrup coming out of mouths in this chamber on Tuesday in the face of Senator Lambie's motion. The fact that Senator Faruqi got up on behalf of the Greens was not only ridiculous, given her own performance standing next to antisemitic posters depicting that Jews must be put in the bin—

Karen Grogan (SA, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Senator Hughes, I'll just ask you to be mindful of where you're going with this in terms of making accusations against senators in this chamber.

Hollie Hughes (NSW, Liberal Party, Shadow Assistant Minister for Mental Health and Suicide Prevention) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The fact that the person who has stood next to a poster that said 'Put Israel in the bin' was also the person who stood up and spoke on behalf of an antisemitic motion in support of Jewish Australians is an insult and a slap in the face to everyone of any decent mind—an absolute slap in the face. And then we hear, 'We must not allow racism, but what we will allow is people to support terrorist groups that like to kill Jews.' That's what universities are allowing to occur. That is what is happening to the young minds of our nation—the young minds who should be put into a situation where they are encouraged to question and grow and learn. Part of that should be that they can actually intellectually understand, when they say 'From the river to the sea', which river and which sea, because I bet most of those children who are out there protesting wouldn't know which river and which sea. They are indoctrinated. It's like a cult.

Families are having to deal with these universities putting this rubbish in their children's heads, turning them into activists, not academics. These universities are turning students into activists, not people who will contribute to our community. They'll spend a life in perpetual university politics and filled with hatred. It must be exhausting for them all to hate everybody so much. Live and let live, people. Why do you just want to hate on the Jews all the time? And the Jewish community knows it. The Holocaust didn't start with the gas chambers; it started with the sort of behaviour we're now seeing on the streets of Sydney, in Dover Heights, in Maroubra and in Dural. Dural is all acreage. It's like semi-rural farmland. It's insanity. How can the Labor government sit there and say, 'Nothing to see here, don't worry; we'll do a half-baked little inquiry'? You can't even get a witness to acknowledge that calling for the death of Israel in 2025 is antisemitism. What is wrong? This is why there must be a judicial inquiry. This is a no-brainer. What is happening in this country has to be stopped, and it has to be stopped before people are indoctrinated into this hatred.

These vice-chancellors are on their million-dollar-plus packages, yet they're allowing this kind of hate to fester. I hope some of them, when they move out of their homes, try to move back to some of the suburbs where this is occurring and can witness it for themselves rather than in the cloistered halls of universities where they hide and fester in this hatred and where they hide and support the terror organisations through their inaction. It is appalling. It is shameful, and I call on the decent members of the Labor Party to— (Time expired)

Ross Cadell (NSW, National Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I move:

That the question be now put.

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

The question is that the question be now put.

Raff Ciccone (Victoria, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The issue that is the subject of the bill before us, the Commission of Inquiry into Antisemitism at Australian Universities Bill 2024 (No. 2), is something that I know is close to the hearts of a lot of speakers, including mine. As a Victorian senator, I know all too well, sadly, the impact that antisemitism is having in our communities and on my friends. It is a scourge on our community. Good friends of mine are distraught about what is occurring in Melbourne, in Sydney and in other parts of the country, but particularly in our two main cities. I would have thought that, in 2025, people in our society would have learnt the lessons from the past and understood that any form of hate speech is just not acceptable in today's society. But the level of hate that is being directed towards the Australian Jewish community is just abhorrent and quite frankly needs to be called out.

It is good to see that, despite some of the other contributions that we heard before and from others in the other place, there is a general bipartisanship on stamping out antisemitism in this country. What the government has also been committed to doing—and has done for some time now—is to try to work with the Jewish community, members of this place in the parliament and our state governments and police, both at a federal and state level, to have a coordinated approach to educating people about why it is not right, why it is not appropriate and why it is having a detrimental impact on the lives of many people in our society.

We have seen protests. We have seen people voicing opposition to events that are currently occurring, and have been occurring for some time, over in the Middle East, particularly in Israel, the West Bank and the Gaza Strip, and we, as a government and as parliamentarians, need to balance that fine line between free speech and the rights of individuals in our society to feel safe and secure, especially when they just want to go about their own lives with their families every single day. The Albanese government has stated on multiple occasions that there is no place for antisemitism. Any kind of racism, vilification or hate speech needs to be called out, and it needs to be stamped out. That includes in our universities.

I can't remember a time when such intense antisemitism and abuse has been directed towards members of the Jewish community. We're a very proud multicultural society where people are currently hurting. It does go to the fabric of our multicultural society and the fantastic policies that I think both sides of politics have embraced for many, many decades—having people come from overseas to call Australia home. So it cannot be left unaddressed.

Just like our schools, universities are places where people from all backgrounds and experiences go to learn, study, teach and strive to make a positive difference in the world, and this includes Jewish students and staff. I know the Jewish community are hurting, because I speak to a lot of them. I speak to many in the community, and I know that they are deeply concerned. It is also of great concern that I and others have heard from members of this community that they feel unsafe on our university campuses. All students and staff have a right to feel and be safe in Australia.

It's also worth reminding the Senate that, as a government, we have established a parliamentary joint committee that is currently conducting an inquiry into antisemitism, and last October the government also referred antisemitism at Australian universities to the Parliamentary Joint Committee on Human Rights for inquiry. Guess who it's chaired by: Mr Josh Burns from the other place, the member for Macnamara, who is a leading example on this issue, which I know is very close to his heart. I know the committee is going through a very thorough process. As part of that inquiry, the committee is considering the prevalence, the nature and the experience of antisemitism at universities, including the frameworks and policies to prevent and respond to it and to support students and staff. I really hope that vice-chancellors and other university leadership are also looking at this very carefully and taking seriously the processes that this parliament has set up, because it really does start to get to people when, time and time again, they see stories in the media about people making some ridiculous and, quite frankly, stupid comments that are directed towards the Jewish community.

The Jewish community in our country are very proud Australians, just like many others who have migrated here and who call Australia home. They have every right to live their lives without intimidation and prejudice. As political leaders in this place we have an obligation to deal with these very sensitive matters in a very calm, respectful and civil way. We have a responsibility to calm any fears that people have in our society, not to inflame tensions. Australia is a very diverse and multicultural nation, and we should celebrate this every single day. It is a nation where everyone should be able to live without fear of being discriminated against or vilified because of who they are or where they originated from. The government wants people in the Middle East to live harmoniously, and we also want to advocate for peace and stability in that region. That begins right here in our own backyard.

I'd also like to place on the record again my enduring support for the people of Israel and the Australian Jewish community, because it saddens me that there are some who have sought to cause division and who continue to cause division. Language of division or language of hate has a very real effect outside of the walls of the Senate and the other place. So I condemn in the strongest possible terms the rise of antisemitism in our country and those who encourage it. It breaks my heart that the Australian Jewish community have been and continue to be subjected to very hateful prejudice, particularly those in my home state and in my great city of Melbourne.

I vividly recall one particular attack where a Jewish school, Mount Scopus Memorial College, was graffitied. I went to university right next door, for many years. The government has stood in solidarity with that school and with that community. I recall that the Deputy Prime Minister, Richard Marles, even visited the school soon after that attack and met with the principal. We also saw that the Prime Minister visited the synagogue that was recently attacked, with the member for Macnamara. Those words that were written on the wall of that school, the vandalism of the offices, the destruction of places of worship and the arson attacks—I am really calling for it to stop, and I know that many in this place are also calling for it to stop.

The Jewish community in our country is very proud and has contributed in many ways to our great country, and people whose history has been so characterised by their persecution by others should feel safe in a country like ours. Like every Australian, they have a right to live their lives without fear and prejudice. As the government has said repeatedly, we believe in the rights of the State of Israel to exist alongside the free and democratic State of Palestine. As community leaders, we have an obligation to call out behaviour that goes against the very essence of our Australian spirit and way of life, and that is why I will keep using my voice to advocate for peace and harmony for Jewish students, teachers and communities. It is the only way forward.

Nita Green (Queensland, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I have a lot of prepared notes here, and I chaired the inquiry into the Commission of Inquiry into Antisemitism at Australian Universities Bill 2024 (No. 2), and I want to go to some of the evidence that we received during that inquiry and the final conclusions of the committee. I'll do that if time allows in this debate.

But, just before I do go to that, I was very distressed to see a senator from the Liberal Party accuse the Prime Minister of avoiding this debate by going to North Queensland today. I just want to say on the record that that is an awful thing to say, given that two people have died in the North Queensland floods and we still have communities that are cut off. There are communities that require an enormous amount of effort from all levels of government, and that is why the Prime Minister is there on the ground today. To accuse the Prime Minister of avoiding the debate by going to the aid of communities in need in North Queensland is disgraceful, reckless and arrogant. I wasn't here for the debate.

I hope that those comments are eventually withdrawn, but it really shows me and says to me that there are people in this place who are seeking to politicise the events that are happening around this country and seeking to politicise this debate in a way that will not help to assist the tensions in our community and that will not end this type of conflict in our community. What our community does not want right now is more conflict and more division, and comments like that from Senator Hughes, from the Liberal Party, do not assist in bringing down the temperature of this debate. That is exactly what the Albanese Labor government has sought to do, and we want to ensure that all Australians have a right to be safe in their homes, communities, educational institutions and workplaces and online. That is why we have been working and making sure that we are taking every action that we can to make sure that people in the community understand that there is no place for antisemitism, Islamophobia or any kind of racism or vilification or hate speech, whether it is in our universities, outside our electorate offices or anywhere else.

We urge communities in Australia to remain respectful, and we strongly condemn anyone who incites violence or hatred within our community. All Australians have a right to feel safe. We don't want to turn distress into anger and hate that divides us. It is very important, in a debate like this, to come back to the words of the Director-General of ASIO, who made it clear. He said:

… it is important that all parties consider the implications for social cohesion when making public statements.

As I said, I chaired the inquiry into this bill, and we received an enormous amount of evidence, and I'm so grateful and thankful to the communities that came forward and gave evidence. The committee was very moved by the evidence given, particularly by students on campuses. The committee found that it is clear that the university responses to incidents of antisemitism and to the fears of Jewish students and staff have been woefully inadequate.

The committee considers that the universities' responses to this issue are remarkably similar to their historically poor responses to sexual assault and harassment.

Now, the committee also found, though, that the bill itself is not the appropriate mechanism for addressing this type of issue, saying:

The committee is concerned that a commission of inquiry would be too slow. As the committee heard from the Attorney-General's Department, the shortest Commonwealth royal commission in recent years was eight months in duration.

And what our communities are calling for right now is swift action—and for social cohesion.

The committee considers that actions that produce results more quickly and are more agile and responsive to the situation on the ground are required. To that end, the committee asks all Australian universities to respond with urgency to the issues raised …

And the committee recommended that the Attorney-General immediately refer an inquiry into antisemitism at Australian universities to the Parliamentary Joint Committee on Human Rights, and that was done. That is exactly the action that our government took. We referred it to that committee. That committee has already started its work. That committee has already started its hearings. That committee is receiving submissions and is getting its work underway.

This bill is all about politics. It's not about solutions on the ground or taking action. It's not about getting things done. It is not about addressing the conflict in our community or setting the standard by which we wish our community members to behave. It is not about ensuring that we can set the standards that we want our community to behave by. And it is not about ensuring that we set the standards for our community that make sure people are safe, that there is clear information for people about the things that they are seeing on universities. We are making sure that there is an inquiry—

Sarah Henderson (Victoria, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Education) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Why doesn't the minister—

Nita Green (Queensland, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

This is the tone of the debate. I can't stand here and speak respectfully without being interrupted by those opposite. I can't stand here and not be yelled at by those from the Liberal and National parties about this issue.

Penny Allman-Payne (Queensland, Australian Greens) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Senator Green, resume your seat. I have asked Senator Green to resume her seat to remind the chamber that interjections are disorderly. There is no point of order in relation to anything that Senator Green has said. Senator Green, can I ask you to direct your comments through the chair.

Nita Green (Queensland, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Chair, I intend to do that.

Penny Allman-Payne (Queensland, Australian Greens) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Senator Green, please resume your seat. Senator Henderson?

Sarah Henderson (Victoria, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Education) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

A point of order on reflection on a senator—

Penny Allman-Payne (Queensland, Australian Greens) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The senator has not reflected on anyone.

Sarah Henderson (Victoria, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Education) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

There was no yelling by me, and I would ask for—

Penny Allman-Payne (Queensland, Australian Greens) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

No, she hasn't.

Sarah Henderson (Victoria, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Education) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

the record to be corrected.

Penny Allman-Payne (Queensland, Australian Greens) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

There's no point of order. Senator Green.

Nita Green (Queensland, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Our government, since the October 7 attacks on Israel, has consulted widely and across communities. We have consulted across the Palestinian, Muslim and Arab communities. We have consulted widely with the Jewish community, and the measures to address community needs identified closely by community members after the attacks are designed to address the short-term as well as the long-term impacts felt across communities in Australia. Our approach supports both short- and long-term impacts of the conflict, enables funding to be distributed rapidly to communities most in need while also building capacity in affected communities. Our priority is to provide support to those communities that have been impacted, and to enhance and foster community connection during these challenging times. That is the priority of our government—taking action, supporting communities and delivering the funding that is needed.

I want to be clear in the final moments that I have that the Australian government has a zero-tolerance approach towards violence and expects all students to act respectfully towards each other. Antisemitism, Islamophobia and any other form of harassment, racism, discrimination or intimidation must not be allowed to threaten the safety of students and staff in Australian university campuses or anywhere else. Any incidents on university campuses that contravene the law should immediately be reported to police. Universities must uphold their obligations under the Higher Education Support Act 2003 and the Higher Education Standards Framework (Threshold Standards) 2021. This includes having policies in place around freedom of speech, fostering a safe environment and ensuring the wellbeing of students and staff. It also includes having effective grievance processes to enable complaints to be made without fear of reprisal.

Our committee heard so many times about the universities not being able to deal with complaints or respond to complaints in an agile way. That was the evidence in our committee. But our government is working to strengthen the student ombudsman—we passed a bill last year—to make sure that students do have someone to go to when they need assistance.

There will always be a place for peaceful protest, but it must be peaceful. There will always be a place for respectful debate, but it must be respectful. Upholding freedom of speech does not extend to protecting or tolerating discriminatory or hate speech, including antisemitism or Islamophobia.

With the final moments I have, I intend to go through some of the work that our government is doing. A bill like this is about an inquiry that will take some time. Our government is delivering on the ground right now. The government has developed a social cohesion package, which includes $25 million to the Executive Council of Australian Jewry to immediately improve safety. I have spoken to the Jewish community in my community in Far North Queensland, and they are very appreciative of these efforts. We are also making sure that we are providing funding for a series of measures to support the Australian community—$3 million for targeted mental health supports, $6 million for mental health and wellbeing support to students in Jewish and Islamic schools and for students of Jewish and Islamic faith—

Penny Allman-Payne (Queensland, Australian Greens) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The time for this debate has expired.