Anthony Albanese announces hate speech crackdown after Bondi shooting

Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said his government would crack down on hate speech following Sunday’s deadly shooting at a Jewish festival at Bondi Beach.

15 people lost their lives when two gunmen opened fire at an event held on the first day of Hanukkah.

Albanese told reporters in Canberra that the new laws would target “those who spread hatred, division and radicalisation”.

The home secretary will also be given new powers to cancel or refuse visas to those spreading hate, and a new taskforce will be set up to ensure the education system “prevents, combats and responds appropriately to antisemitism”.

The new laws would also include penalties for preachers and leaders who incite violence, a new federal crime of “aggravated hate speech,” and the introduction of “hate” as an aggravating factor in punishing crimes of online threats and harassment.

“Every Australian Jew has the right to feel safe, valued and respected for their contribution to our great nation,” Albanese said. he said.

“ISIS-inspired terrorists… sought to turn Australians against each other. Australians responded with love and sympathy to those mourning this act of hate.”

Albanese added that his government would “fully support and embrace” the recommendations made in a July report by antisemitism ambassador Jillian Segal, who spoke at the press conference.

He said the country was at a “very important time, not only for our society, but also for combating antisemitism around the world.”

His report was criticized by some after it was published in July for its implications for freedom of expression, including plans to monitor universities and arts organizations and cut funding if they failed to take action against antisemitism. For example, there were concerns that the funding could be used to silence pro-Palestinian protests.

The Jewish Council of Australia said it supported Albanese’s commitment to action, including his focus on gun reform and online hate.

However, it said it was “concerned that elements in today’s announcement resemble long-standing proposals from the pro-Israel lobby that have nothing to do with combating violent extremism.”

Jewish Council of Australia executive officer Dr. “If education initiatives such as university scorecards become a form of ideological policing, especially where they are used to limit legitimate criticism of Israel, they will only make Jews less safe and do the opposite of combating antisemitism,” Max Kaiser said.

Meanwhile, Albanese acknowledged accusations from the Jewish community that his government had not done enough to prevent antisemitism since the Hamas attack on Israel on October 7, and said more could have been done.

“As the prime minister of Australia, I accept my responsibility in this matter,” he said. “But I also accept my responsibility to lead the nation and unite the nation. Because what people are looking for at this time is not more division.”

Home Secretary Tony Burke said the government had “shifted the threshold” on hate speech.

“There have been individuals who have managed to exploit a country with different principles of freedom of expression and go to the limits of language that is clearly inhumane, unacceptable, has no place in Australia, but they don’t quite cross the threshold of violence,” he said.

Daniel Aghion, president of the Executive Council of Australian Jews, the peak body representing Australian Jews, said he “needed to see the details before making an assessment of whether the measures would fit the bill”.

“We warned after October 7 of the risk of not tackling antisemitism immediately and effectively in this country. The murder of Jews and other Australians in order for this step to be taken is an absolute tragedy.”