Quakers Australia recently made a submission to the Royal Commission on Antisemitism and Social Cohesion. The submission urges the government to proceed with balance and to focus on universal protections for all people, against racial or religious discrimination and vilification, rather than targeted protections for particular groups…
“As Quakers we seek a world without war. We seek a sustainable and just community. We have a vision of an Australia that upholds human rights and builds peace internationally, with particular focus on our region. In our approach to government, we promote the importance of dialogue, of listening and of seeking that of God in every person. We aim to work for justice and to take away the occasion of war.
Australian Quakers come from a variety of backgrounds, including a number who identify as Jewish Quakers, have Jewish family connections or are active in a Jewish congregation. Those with Jewish connections have been core active voices in Quaker advocacy for Palestinian rights, and all Quakers seek to respect all humanity regardless of ethnicity, religion or gender. One of our members recently stated that ‘The Bondi attack was a tragedy, but it is not a reason to clamp down on legitimate protests…We must not allow divisions to flourish in our society. I believe that my many relatives who perished in the Holocaust will have died in vain if we have learned nothing.’
In approaching the question of antisemitism and social cohesion, we urge the government to proceed with balance and to focus on universal protections for all people, against racial or religious discrimination and vilification, rather than targeted protections for particular groups. We also urge the government to work within the framework of existing structures, particularly the Australian Human Rights Commission; and legislation, such as the Racial Discrimination Act 1975, rather than attempting to create new bodies and new regulatory mechanisms for specific groups.
We also want to underscore the importance of protecting political expression and to ensure that anti-Zionism is not conflated with antisemitism. Zionism is a term that means vastly different things to many people, and all people must have the freedom of conscience to reject a political ideology, such as Zionism, without this being impugned as antisemitic. We note a range of Jewish voices, including the Jewish Council of Australia argue strongly that anti-Zionism cannot be included in any definition of antisemitism…”