Experts debunk mass migration claims that fuel rallies
False claims about “out of control” immigration are being disputed by experts as police prepare for protests and counter-rallies in Australia’s biggest cities.
Tourism and travel data was misused by neo-Nazis and white supremacists to boost attendance at anti-immigration rallies across the country in August, according to a report by the Australian National University.
The Australian Bureau of Statistics’ permanent and long-term movement data records trips within and outside the country and classifies them according to their duration, the legal status of the person making the move and other measures.
But report co-authors Emeritus Professor Peter McDonald and ANU Migration Center director Alan Gamlen said this was not a valid measure of migration.
“The dataset has been regularly used by anti-immigration activists and political organizations to overstate the numbers and say immigration to Australia is out of control,” Professor Gamlen told AAP.
“But it catches all kinds of people who are not immigrants at all.”
The data has been misused so frequently that the ABS issued a warning in August saying it did not measure migration and was mostly used to understand traveler movements.
Instead, Australians were asked to use the bureau’s net overseas migration figures (the number of immigrants arriving in Australia minus the number leaving).
While this figure rose after the pandemic-triggered low, it has fallen sharply since September 2023.
“To say that immigration is out of control when this is not the case is divisive and potentially damaging to social cohesion,” Prof Gamlen said.
“People who speak out about this in the public sphere owe it to the Australian people to give them the facts so they can make decisions on the issues that matter to them.
“They can’t do that if they’re given false, fear-mongering information.”
Anti-immigration rallies organized by anti-vaccine protester Monica Smith will be held in Sydney and Melbourne over the weekend.
At the event, far-right British figure Stephen Christopher Yaxley-Lennon, also known as Tommy Robinson, will speak via video link.
He was previously banned from various social media platforms for violating rules on hateful behavior and hate speech.
In the past, the federal government has denied visas to international far-right figures, including Gavin McInnes, who will tour Australia with Robinson in 2019.
NSW Police Minister Yasmin Catley has warned there will be a significant police presence around the Sydney CBD on Saturday.
“NSW is a strong, multicultural society; we will not tolerate hate on our streets,” he said.
A counter-protest will also be held to retaliate against anti-immigrant sentiment.
“‘It will take community mobilization to welcome immigrants and rid our streets of Nazis and racists,'” Refugee Action Coalition spokesman Ian Rintoul said.
Victoria police are establishing designated areas and stepping up operations in Melbourne ahead of Sunday’s anti-immigration protest.
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