‘Time is not right': Albanese government told recognising Palestinian state would be 'scandalous' and an 'empty gesture'
While Jewish groups have advised strongly against such a move, which has been described as 'scandalous' and possibly an 'empty gesture', Treasurer Jim Chalmers signalled otherwise.
On Thursday, Mr Chalmers said Australia's direction in recognising Palestinian statehood was a "matter of when, not if'.
Mr Chalmers said the Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Penny Wong would respond to the pledges made by the other countries in 'due course' and said the 'progress is welcome'.
'But it is also conditional. As (Canadian) Prime Minister (Mark) Carney said and as Prime Minister Albanese said, we need to make sure that there is no role for Hamas in any future leadership. We need to make sure that the hostages are released too,' the Treasurer told Sky News.
Among the voices urging Mr Albanese not to follow the UK, France and Canada is Mark Liebler, a prominent Jewish lawyer and activist for Israel and Indigenous Australians, who said the Prime Minister indicated the timing was not optimal for such a diplomatic gesture.
'The Prime Minister has made it clear that, in the current circumstances, with Hamas terrorists continuing to hold both Israeli citizens and Palestinian civilians hostage in Gaza, the time is not right for recognition of a Palestinian state,' Mr Leibler told The Australian.
'The countries that have chosen to go down this path now are only encouraging Hamas in its current intransigence, and further delaying the release of hostages and the end of suffering for innocent Palestinians in Gaza.'
Executive Council of Australian Jewry co-chief executive Peter Wertheim said in a statement that recognising Palestine as a state would be 'scandalous' given the circumstances.
'It would be scandalous if Australia and other nations were to recognise a Palestinian State which, from day one, was internationally responsible for the holding of living and dead hostages and was impotent in the face of armed terrorist groups controlling large parts of its territory,' he said.
'That would be worse than an empty gesture; it would set the scene for even more carnage than has already occurred for ordinary people on both sides of the conflict.'
Mr Wertheim said the minimal condition for recognition must be the release of all Israeli hostages, alive or dead, and the 'complete disarming' of Hamas.
'The Arab League has now also demanded; an overhaul of the corrupt and incompetent Palestinian Authority; the creation of conditions for free and fair Palestinian elections; and the announcement of a date for elections,' Mr Wetheim said.
Jewish lawyers from the UK have warned British Prime Minister Keir Starmer that his pledge to recognise Palestine risked breaking international law.
According to The Australian, a letter with 40 signatories said a Palestinian state would not meet the recognition criteria under the 1933 Montevideo Convention.
Prime Minister Keir Starmer, who Mr Albanese has met with twice this week to talk about Gaza, said on Wednesday Britain's recognition was not a 'gesture' but diplomatic push 'rooted in a process of change'.
Mr Albanese, speaking on Wednesday, stopped short of confirming a timeline, but reiterated his lifelong support for a two-state solution and hinted that the moment for meaningful change may finally be approaching.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Perth Now
21 minutes ago
- Perth Now
Sydney prepares for bridge march
Tens of thousands of pro-Palestinian protesters are expected to stream across the Sydney Harbour Bridge on Sunday after the Supreme Court rejected a bid to block the anti-war march across the landmark. Conditions are expected to be wet for the rally, with the Bureau of Meteorology predicting 10 to 35mm of rain on Sunday, but organisers claim as many as 50,000 people could take part. Protesters will gather at Lang Park in the Sydney CBD at 1pm before marching across the bridge. Beginning at York and Grosvenor streets at 1.30pm, protesters will then file onto the bridge before finishing on the northern side of the bridge at Bradfield Park, according to rally organisers the Palestine Action Group. The march is expected to last three hours. Traffic on the bridge will be closed from 11.30am and is expected to be re-opened by 4pm. Residents and motorists are being urged to avoid the area having been warned of significant disruptions. Bus services will terminate in the CBD on the south side of the bridge and at North Sydney and St Leonards on the northern side. A massive pro-Palestinian protest is due to go ahead on the Sydney Harbour Bridge on Sunday. NewsWire / Damian Shaw. Credit: News Corp Australia Protest organiser Josh Lees. NewsWire/Jeremy Piper. Credit: News Corp Australia Trains will be running across the Harbour Bridge during the march, but delays are expected given the number of people predicted to be streaming into the city. Transport for NSW says that 'extensive' queues are expected at the entrance to the Sydney Harbour Tunnel, with a flow-on effect expected for the rest of the traffic network. Motorists are being urged to consider alternative routes and allow plenty of extra time, including going from the northern beaches and north shore to the airport. The Metro service will not in operation between Tallawong and Sydenham on Sunday due to trackwork. Buses will replace Metro services between Tallawong and Chatswood . Palestine Action Group organiser Josh Lees, who has been the public face of the group's push to hold the historic march across the bridge, hailed a NSW Supreme Court decision on Saturday as a 'huge victory for the Palestine movement in this country' Premier Chris Minns had publicly expressed his opposition to the march. Traffic will be closed on the Harbour Bridge for four and a half hours. Christian Gilles/NewsWire. Credit: News Corp Australia And the NSW Police made an application to the NSW Supreme Court to block the protesters being issued with a Form 1, which affords protesters protection from anti-assembly laws However Justice Belinda Rigg refused the Commissioner's application. 'The fact the proposed assembly is likely to cause significant inconvenience to residents … is far from determinative,' Justice Rigg said in her judgment. 'If matters such as this were to be determinative, no assembly involving inconvenience to others would be permitted.' The Palestinian Action Group said in a social media post: 'Tomorrow we are going to make history! 'We will hold a massive march over the Sydney Harbour Bridge, dedicated to using our people power to stop the genocide in Gaza. 'We are working with police and NSW transport to ensure a safe, family-friendly event for everyone.'
ABC News
an hour ago
- ABC News
Hamas says it won't disarm unless independent Palestinian state established
Hamas has said it would not lay down arms unless an independent Palestinian state is established. Indirect negotiations between Hamas and Israel aimed at securing a 60-day ceasefire in the Gaza war and a deal for the release of hostages ended last week in deadlock. In a statement, the Palestinian militant faction said its "armed resistance … cannot be relinquished except through the full restoration of our national rights, foremost among them the establishment of an independent, fully sovereign Palestinian state with Jerusalem as its capital".
Herald Sun
an hour ago
- Herald Sun
Victoria's racial vilification laws under fire as anti-Semitism soars
Victoria's Office of Public Prosecutions has not approved a single charge under the state's racial vilification laws amid soaring multicultural tensions and the worst spike in anti-Semitism Victoria has ever seen. The state's legal defence against bigots who racially or religiously vilify an individual or group has been labelled a 'catastrophic failure' after attempts by police to charge potential offenders were thwarted by the state's Director of Public Prosecutions. The Herald Sun can reveal the DPP has rejected potential charges proposed by Victoria Police under the laws over six incidents since Hamas' barbaric October 7 massacre in Israel – followed by Israel's deadly bombardment of Gaza – sparked a cultural and religious firestorm. The charges are understood to be related to the Jewish community and other multicultural communities. The Office of Public Prosecutions said another five requests for criminal charges were still being investigated. It comes as racial and religious tensions reach boiling point once again. Among the cases still being considered is a shocking neo-Nazi protest which occurred on the steps of parliament on December 20 last year – seven months ago. The black-clad white nationalists who chanted 'the Jews must go' and held up a sign reading 'Jews hate freedom' are yet to face charges. Victoria Police confirmed that they had referred charges under the act to the OPP. The group responsible, the Nationalist Socialist Network, has since gone on to stage multiple offensive protests, including one at Northland in which they promoted a racial slur towards African-Australians. Jewish community advocate Menachem Vorchheimer said the Racial and Religious Tolerance Act – which has been in place for more than two decades – was 'inoperable'. 'This is a catastrophic failure,' he said. Under the rarely used legislation, police are forced to seek approval from the DPP in order to press charges against a someone they believe has incited or encouraged hatred, serious contempt, revulsion or severe ridicule against an individual or group because of their race and/or religion. Following a last minute deal with the Greens, under the state's new anti-vilification or hate speech laws — which comes into play next month — police will also have to seek approval from the DPP in order to lay charges. The extra hurdle for police has raised concerns that the upcoming laws, regularly spruiked by the state government as the answer to the anti-Semitism crisis and rising extremism, has raised fears relevant charges may take months or be blocked altogether. Jewish Community Council of Victoria chief executive Naomi Levin said failing to lay charges meant potential offenders were given the green light to continue their offensive behaviour. 'An important aspect of the justice system is deterrence, but when no arrests are made for months and months that deterrence is eroded and individuals act with impunity,' she said. 'No one wants to see racist radicals roaming the streets and terrorising local communities.' Victoria Police's Operation Park, launched in response to increasing acts of anti-Semitism and Islamophobia, has led to 149 arrests, with some dealt prison sentences. A police spokesman said the force regularly seeks advice from the Office of Public Prosecutions in relation to potential charges under the Act. He said a number of active matters, understood to be for lower level offences, were before the courts. A spokesman for the Director of Public Prosecutions said evidence from police, including all relevant statements, footage, interviews and other evidence obtained, can take several months to collate and hand to the OPP. 'Once the evidence has been collated and provided to the OPP, a careful assessment of the prospects of conviction for the RRTA charge can be undertaken,' she said. Opposition police spokesman David Southwick said police being blocked from taken swift action was a 'fundamental failure of Labor's so-called hate crime laws'. 'At a time when anti‑Semitic and racial hate has surged, police are doing their job with one arm tied behind their back,' he said. A Victorian Government spokesperson said charges were a matter for Victoria Police and the OPP. She said the new anti vilification laws included tougher penalties, including up to five years imprisonment, which would act as a deterrent. 'This hateful, extremist behaviour and the cowards who push it have no place here in Victoria,' she said.
