Julian Leeser urges Anthony Albanese to commit and implement Special Envoy recommendations on antisemitism
Special Envoy to Combat Antisemitism Jillian Segal handed down a major report on Thursday, outlining a series of measures to combat antisemitism she claimed had 'reached a tipping point that threatens social harmony, undermines trust in institutions and marginalises Jewish Australian citizens'.
Speaking to Sky News Australia on Sunday, Mr Leeser welcomed the report as he stressed the need for the recommendations to be implemented.
'While this is a terrific work plan for the Special Envoy, what we haven't seen is a commitment from government,' Mr Leeser told Kieran Gilbert on Sky News' Sunday Agenda.
'The Special Envoy's got a very big task ahead of her if she's going to bring the universities to heel, if she going to deal with the cultural institutions, if she's going to deal with social media companies.
'In order to be successful, she needs to do that with the full commitment of the Prime Minister in his office. And that's why we're calling on the Prime Minster, and Tony Burke, and the Government to commit to the Special Envoy's recommendations.
'And while the Prime Minister and Tony Burke made all the right noises at the press conference earlier this week, we've seen in the past the Special Envoys make sensible recommendations and yet those recommendations (have been) ignored."
Mr Leeser said the most disturbing factor following the Hamas October 7 attack is the seriousness some people don't show towards antisemitism.
'One of the most disturbing factors in the report is the fact that young people under 35 don't recognise the seriousness of antisemitism and don't treat it properly. And that is in part because of what is happening in our schools, in our universities and online,' he said.
An issue the Liberal MP has been pushing for is an inquiry into the 'normalised' stance on antisemitism at university campuses and cultural institutions.
'We have antisemitism having been normalised on university campuses and in the cultural institutions,' he said.
'More than a year ago, I put forward a proposal for a judicial inquiry into antisemitism on campus, where we've had university academics having their offices urinated on, where we've had students wearing Yarmulkes' being spat at and told that they're responsible for the deaths of babies in Gaza.
'This is an intolerable situation to go on. We've had Jewish artists cancelled. We've had things going on online and in schools and in other areas of our society that the Prime Minister has refused to address.'
Mr Leeser said universities should be life-transforming places where people get an education, have more opportunities in life and can freely debate and engage in ideas of robust and difficult conversations.
Instead, he said there is hate and division rising across Australian campuses where Jewish staff and students are being silenced and intimidated.
'There has been an attempt to silence Jewish academics. There has been an attempt to intimidate Jewish academics, Jewish staff and Jewish students in recent times. And that just shouldn't be what universities are about,' he added.
'And the worst thing has been the way in which university leaders have been too slow to act or ignored the fact that there was any problem.'
Mr Leeser pointed towards a moment where pro-Palestine encampments continued for months at Sydney University until Vice-Chancellor Professor Mark Scott apologised to Jewish students for failing them.
'The encampment were only disbanded after the Vice-Chancellor promised to let His Butte to Rear, which is an organisation that several of our partners list as a terrorist organisation, run their ruler over security and defence contracts that the university had, just demonstrated how out of touch universities are with the expectations of ordinary Australians that universities should be a place for free debate and inquiry,' he said.
At the time, Professor Scott said he apologised to Jewish students for feeling unsafe during the eight-week Students for Palestine protest.
"If students have felt unsafe or unwelcome, if that is their lived experience, if that is their testimony, we have failed them," he said.
"Yes, I have failed them and the university has failed them and that is why we have made significant changes to our policy settings.'
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said the Special Envoy to Combat Antisemitism report comes at a time of the recent rise of hate towards Jewish Australians.
'The Albanese Government has zero tolerance for prejudice or hatred of any kind,' Mr Albanese said.
'Antisemitic behaviour in Australia, including its recent rise, is unacceptable and the appointment of Ms Segal demonstrates our Government's firm commitment to tackling antisemitism head-on.'
Ms Segal said combating antisemitism has never been more important than it is today.
'The Jewish community in Australia is experiencing valid feelings of fear in the face of increasing antisemitism,' she said.
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