Australia’s Unstinting Support for Israel.
Original Thinking from Barry Shaw.
Three men, one aged 23, the other two aged 17, were arrested as part of a gang that viciously attacked
five Jews in the Bondi district of Sydney on October 25, 2013.
Although this was a rare anti-Semitic violent attack in Australia,
statistics show there are over five hundred anti-Jewish incidents a year in
Australia.
Jews have been an integral part of Australia since its
inception as in no other nation.
The first Jews to arrive in Australia, like so many of its
pioneers, were prisoners shipped there by the British who looked on Australia
as a penal colony. Today, the Jewish population numbers 120,000, making it the
ninth biggest Jewish community in the world.
Sydney’s Jewish life developed with the help of Joseph
Barrow Montefiore, a cousin of Sir Moses Montefiore. It built the first
synagogue in Australia in 1844. This was quickly followed by Hobart on the
island of Tasmania, Launceston, Melbourne, and Adelaide.
Australia remains the only nation, apart from Israel, whose
founding fathers included Jews. As a
result, Jews were treated as equal citizens from the beginning. Jews were free
to participate in cultural, economic, and political life of Australia without
restriction. Already in the nineteenth century Jews had reached high positions
such as speaker of Parliament, speaker of the house of Representatives, Premier
of the State of South Australia, and the mayor of Melbourne.
The Jewish population was boosted at the turn of the century
by refugees fleeing the pogroms of Russia and Poland. The Second World War added a further
injection of Jewish immigration to Australia with some seven thousand entering
the country on visas before the outbreak of the war. As an outcome of the
infamous Evian Conference of 1938, Australia generously agreed to accept the
greatest number of Jewish refugees fleeing Nazi Germany. This was followed by a
further flow of refugees in the aftermath of the Holocaust. Surprisingly,
Australia has the highest percentage of Holocaust survivors of any diaspora
community. Further influx came in 1989 from South African Jews and later from
Jews released from the former Soviet Union.
Jews have participated and contributed to the pioneering
settlement and development of Australia. Isaac Nathan is considered to be the
father of Australian music. Sir Isaac Isaacs was the first Australian
Governor-General. Sir John Monash led Australian forces in World War One. He
was the first Major-General in the Australian Army, followed by Paul Cullen
and, in 2009, neuro-surgeon Jeffrey Rosenfeld, a cousin of Monash, was promoted
to that rank.
Israel Smith became the first Jew to win the Victoria Cross
for bravery in battle. Smith had emigrated to Australia from Manchester,
England, but returned to Britain to join the Manchester Regiment at the
outbreak of the First World War. He was wounded five times and returned to
Australia after the war.
Australia has a place in local history in Israel. On October
31, 1917, the 4th Australian Light Horse Brigade captured Beer Sheba
from the Turks paving the way to the liberation of Jerusalem by General
Allenby.
On September 25, 1918, the Australian Light Horse made the
last cavalry charge of World War One by the banks of the Sea of Galilee at
Tsemach and captured the railway station in the Jezreel valley. A memorial can
be seen to this exploit in the gardens of college of Tsemach.
It is interesting to note that the famous Israeli general,
Moshe Dayan, lost his eye fighting alongside Australian troops against the
Vichy French in Lebanon in 1941. He was awarded an Australian military honor
for his action.
Australia has come a long way from its days as a penal
colony. Today, it has a strict immigration policy based on merit and identity
with the cultural and national norms of the country. It has taken a strong
position on illegal migrants. As such, it shares a meeting of minds with
Israel.
The Australian Jewish community is very supportive of Israel
and have been active is Jews in distress around the world, including past
campaigns on behalf of Soviet and Ethiopian Jewry. There are a number of active
Zionist organizations.
Australia’s government has always been a staunch ally and
supporter of Israel. They perceive shared values and problems. Unlike many
countries, leading Australian politicians have publicly acted and declared
their firm opposition to the boycott movement in their country. In July, 2011,
Australia’s then Foreign Minister, Kevin Rudd, joined Labour Parliamentarian
and Chairman of Australia’s Foreign Affairs, Defense, and Trade Committee,
Michael Danby, inside the Max Brenner chocolate shop in Melbourne in a public
act of solidarity with the store that was being picketed by pro-Palestinian
activists. Rudd said at the time, “I
don’t think in 21st-century Australia there is a place for the attempted
boycott of a Jewish business. I thought we had learned that from history.”
In July, 2012,
several prominent Labour Party members in New South Wales successfully blocked
a move by the Green party in favor of an anti-Israel boycott resolution.
In April, 2013,
Australian Prime Minister, Julia Gillard, denounced pro-Palestinian activists
as their protests against the opening of a Max Brenner shop was marred by
anti-Jewish and Holocaust-denying statements and material, saying that
Australia had always had firm opposition to the BDS Movement. Liberal Party
deputy leader, Julie Bishop, promised to cut off federal grants to any
individual and institution that supports the BDS campaign. If only European
governments would follow Australia’s example.
As in most
countries, the nest of anti-Israel radicalism can be found in Australia in the
universities. Israeli legal action organization, Shurat HaDin, has filed a
class action complaint, under the Australian Racial Discrimination Act of 1975
against a Sydney professor’s participation and public support for an academic
boycott against Israeli universities.
In his letter,
Shurat HaDin Australian lawyer, Alexander Hamilton, pointed out that it was unlawful for anyone “to do any
act involving a distinction, exclusion, or preference based on race, national,
or ethnic origin which has the purpose…of nullifying or impairing…fundamental
freedom in the…economic, social, cultural or any other field of public life.”
It was felt
that staunch support for Israel was wavering under a Rudd leadership, but the
new Conservative government
of Tony Abbott, in coalition with Julie Bishop, is expected to continue
Australia’s firm support of Israel and to maintain the denial of funding to any
anti-Israel boycott attempt. In a pre-election statement, Abbott said,
As the headline
in “The Australian” national newspaper on September 26, 2013, proudly
heralded, “Unstinting Support for Israel Back in Place.”
Barry Shaw is the
Special Consultant on Delegitimization Issues to The Strategic Dialogue Center,
Netanya Academic College.
He is also the
author of the book “Israel Reclaiming the Narrative.” www.israelnarrative.com
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