Government Told NZ Should Not Follow Australia's Lead To Criminalise Support For Palestine

Scoop

10 hours ago

14 July 2025
Palestine Solidarity Network Aotearoa is urging the New Zealand government NOT to follow Australia's example with measures which would effectively criminalise the Palestine solidarity movement.
The Australian government has announced plans to implement recommendations from its anti-semitism envoy which PSNA says creates a 'hierarchy of racism' with anti-semitism at the top, while Islamophobia and anti-Palestinian racism hardly feature.
However we know at least some of the appalling anti-semitic attacks in Sydney have been bogus.
PSNA Co-chair John Minto says PSNA has no tolerance for anti-semitism in Aotearoa New Zealand, or anywhere else.
'But equally there should be no place for any other kind of racism, such as Islamophobia and anti-Palestinian racism. Our government must speak out against all forms of discrimination and support all communities when racism rears its ugly head. Let's not forget the murderous attacks on the Christchurch mosques.'
Minto says the Australian measures will inevitably be used to criminalise the Palestinian solidarity movement across Australia.
'We see it happening in the US, to attack and demonise support for Palestinian human rights by the Trump administration. We see it orchestrated in the UK to shut down any speech which Prime Minister Starmer and the Israeli government don't like.'
PSNA agrees with the Jewish Council of Australia who have warned the Australian government adopting these measures could result in
'undermining Australia's democratic freedoms, inflaming community divisions, and entrenching selective approaches to racism that serve political agendas'
Minto says the free speech restrictions in the US, UK and Australia have nothing to do with what people usually understand as anti-semitism.
'The drive comes from the Israeli government. They see making anti-semitism charges as the most effective means of preventing anyone publicly pointing to the genocide its armed forces are perpetrating in Gaza.'
'The definition of anti-semitism, usually inserted into codes of ethics or legislation, is from the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance. The IHRA definition includes eleven examples. Seven of the examples are about criticising Israel.'
'It's quite clear the Israeli campaign is to distract the community from Israel's horrendous war crimes, such as the round-the-clock mass killing and mass starvation of Palestinians in Gaza, and deflect calls for sanctions against Israel.'
'Already we can see in both the UK and US, that people have been arrested for saying things about Israel which would not have been declared illegal if they'd said it about other countries, including their own.'
Minto says there are already worrying signs that the New Zealand government and New Zealand media and police are falling into the trap.
'Just over the past few weeks, there has been an unusually wide-ranging mainstream media focus on anti-semitism;
At least one opinion piece in the Stuff newspapers from NZ Jewish Council spokesperson Ben Kepes on anti-semitism here
A major interview in Stuff on anti-semitism with NZJC spokesperson Ben Kepes
A New Zealand Herald opinion piece from NZJC spokesperson Juliet Moses
A New Zealand Herald podcast featuring Holocaust Foundation spokesperson Deborah Hart. The Holocaust Foundation is partly funded by the Israeli Embassy.
An enthusiastic 1News item on the latest appeal to the government to adopt similar measures here to those taken in Australia (TVNZ One News 13 July 2025)
Stories highlighting anti-semitic graffiti in Wellington – numerous reports along these lines
Stuff newspapers highlighting the case of an assault on a visiting Israeli after an altercation in Christchurch with the accused held overnight, denied bail and the police claiming it was a 'hate crime'
However, our politicians and media have been silent about;
An attack which knocked a young Palestinian woman to the ground when she was using a microphone to speak during an Auckland march
An attack where a Palestine supporter was kicked and knocked to the pavement outside the Israeli embassy in Wellington. The accused was wearing an Israeli flag. He was not held in custody and the Post newspaper has reported neither the arrest nor the resulting charge (this case is due in court 15 July)
An attack on a Palestine solidarity marshal in Christchurch who was punched in the face, in front of police, but no action taken.
An attack in Christchurch when a Destiny Church member kicked a solidarity marshal in the chest (no action taken by police)
Anti-Palestinian racist attacks on the home of a Palestine solidarity activist in New Plymouth. One of our supporters has had their front fence spraypainted twice with pro-Israel graffiti and their car tyres slashed twice (4 tyres in total) and had vile defamatory material circulated in their neighbourhood. (The police say they cannot help)
The frequent condemnation of anti-semitism by the previous Chief Human Rights Commissioner, but his refusal to condemn the deep-seated anti-Palestinian racism of the New Zealand Jewish Council and Israel Institute of New Zealand.
The refusal of the Human Rights Commission to publicly correct false statements it published in the Post newspaper which claimed anti-semitism was increasing, when in fact the evidence it was using was that the rate of incidents had declined.
Minto says in each of the cases above there would have been far more attention from politicians, the police and the media had the victims been Israeli supporters.
'Meanwhile, both our government and the New Zealand Jewish Council have refused to condemn Israel's blatant war crimes. There is silence on the mass killing, mass starvation and ethnic cleansing of Palestinians in Gaza. The Jewish Council and our government stand together and refuse to hold Israel's racist apartheid regime to account in just about any way.'
'This refusal to condemn what genocide scholars, including several Israeli genocide academics, have labelled as a 'text-book case of genocide', brings shame on both the New Zealand Jewish Council and the New Zealand government.'
'Adding to the clear perception of appalling bias on the part of our government, both the Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs, have met with New Zealand Jewish Council spokespeople over the war in Gaza.'
'But both have refused to meet with representatives of Palestinian New Zealanders, or the huge number of Jewish supporters of the Palestine solidarity movement.'
'New Zealand must stand up and be counted against genocide wherever it appears and no matter who the victims are.'