Anti-immigration rallies ‘sow division’ after massacre
One Nation member Barnaby Joyce headlined an anti-immigration rally despite police and politicians denigrating the incident to follow up on a day of reflection following the Bondi massacre.
About 200 protesters, some carrying Australian flags and some carrying anti-Islamic banners, descended on a park in central Sydney a week after 15 people were killed in the country’s worst mass shooting since 1996.
Gunman Sajid Akram, 50, and his son Naveed, 24, were allegedly inspired by the Islamic State, further fueling already rising anti-immigrant sentiment.
Even before the terrorist attack, One Nation had reached record highs in the polls; A survey conducted by Resolve revealed that 64 percent of voters support stopping immigration.
Addressing the crowd, Mr Joyce said people who wanted to harm Australians should be “sent back to where they came from”.
“You should be allowed to go to the beach on Sunday without being killed,” the former deputy prime minister and former Nationals leader said.
“(My wife) was crying because people were being killed, children were being killed, old people were being killed, and our nation was being stained with filth.”
Mr Joyce said the “weak” prime minister should be sacked, prompting cries of “sack him” from the crowd.
In Melbourne, heavy rain kept crowds apart from a few dozen die-hards swaying on the steps of the Victorian Parliament.
Police and politicians have previously urged people not to attend protests, saying they risked public safety and threatened to further inflame division.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said: “Terrorists tried to divide this country, but now is the time to unite, especially on this day of national reflection.” he said.
“Following last Sunday’s anti-Semitic terrorist attack there are organized demonstrations aimed at sowing division and they have no place in Australia.”
NSW Premier Chris Minns said an attack on migrant communities was “the last thing we need right now”.
“The Jewish community buries its dead,” he told ABC News.
“They deserve the opportunity to do this with grace and some peace.
“Hate begetting hatred, and hatred begetting hatred, will lead us into a spiral of extremism and violence that may be difficult to extinguish.”
Mr Minns urged people victimized by violence to do something good like donating blood instead.
NSW Police said the meeting was unauthorized because organizers failed to obtain the necessary approval.
“NSW Police Force recognizes that this is not an appropriate time for public gatherings that could escalate tensions or create additional risks to community safety,” he said in a statement.
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