EDITORIAL: Anti-Semitism report must be a line in the sand

Burmese Australians are not made to answer for atrocities committed by Myanmar’s ruling military junta.

Demonstrations are not held outside Chinese restaurants in protest of human rights abuses by the Chinese Government.

And businesses owned by Australian Christians aren’t subject to organised boycotts in retaliation to abuses by the Catholic Church.

Yet to a significant portion of society, Jewish Australians are fair game, to be held personally responsible for the devastation which has unfolded in Gaza and the Middle East since October 7, 2023.

That atrocity — one which was perpetrated against Israel and its citizens, not by it — and its aftermath have unleashed a torrent of anti-Semitism here on the other side of the world.

Hateful acts once unthinkable in Australia have become routine. Jewish university students made to feel unsafe and unwelcome on campus. Racist slogans scrawled in public places.

The Prime Minister made clear there was no place in Australia for anti-Semitism.

In one of the most recent incidents last week, a Melbourne synagogue packed with worshippers was subject to an attempted firebombing.

According to a landmark report by Australia’s anti-Semitism envoy Jillian Segal, incidents of anti-Semitism have increased by 300 per cent since the October 7 massacre.

Ms Segal’s report was accompanied by a plan to stamp out this sickness which has infected Australia. Under this plan, universities and arts bodies which don’t do enough to stamp out anti-Semitic conduct would lose funding. Border Force officials would be trained to spot anti-Semites and prevent them from entering the country. The history of the Holocaust would be embedded into school curricula and media organisations would be monitored to ensure “impartial and balanced” reporting.

The report is a work of moral heft and one Anthony Albanese, standing with Ms Segal at its launch on Thursday, pledged to give appropriate consideration.

The Prime Minister made clear there was no place in Australia for anti-Semitism veiled as criticism of the Israeli Government, but nor did a zero-tolerance approach to anti-Semitism mean the silencing of legitimate criticism.

“I have released statements with other leaders that have been critical of the actions of the Netanyahu government … But you can put forward those views respectfully,” he said.

“Whatever your issue in the Middle East, it is not advanced by attacking people here in Australia because of who they are, because of their faith, because of their identity.”

It is regrettable that Multicultural Affairs Minister Anne Aly was absent from the line-up of politicians welcoming Dr Segal’s report.

The unveiling of the report, which had been a year in the making, coincided with Dr Aly’s annual leave.

The unfortunate clash meant a missed opportunity for Australia’s most senior Muslim politician to send a powerful message to the community that hatred against Jews on account of their religion will never be tolerated in this country.

Responsibility for the editorial comment is taken by Editor-in-Chief Christopher Dore.