From tolerance to terror

I've come here to pay my respects to the 15 innocent people who lost their lives in the deadliest terrorist attack in Australia's history, in the greatest loss of Jewish life since October 7, 2023, anywhere around the world, outside the state of Israel.

Rabbis, Holocaust survivors and the beautiful 10-year-old Mat­ilda. Her parents said they gave her that name because it was the most Australian name they knew. What a tragedy.

This massacre at Bondi is the greatest stain on our nation. It has brought the greatest shame to our nation.

I'm here to mourn, but I'm also here to warn.

Unless our governments, federal and state, take urgent, unprecedented and strong action, as night follows day, we will be back grieving the loss of innocent life in another terrorist attack in our country.

This was all too predictable. Ever since those hours after Hamas's horrific attack on October 7, we saw the heinous scenes on the steps of another national icon, the Sydney Opera House, with people celebrating the death and destruction caused by Hamas.

Who was apprehended that day? None of those who hate Australia and hate Jews, but a simple Jewish man holding the Israeli flag in solidarity.

What we have seen over the last 2½ years is the boycotting of Jewish businesses, the graffiti of our schools, the harassment and the intimidation of Jewish students and staff on our university campuses, the firebombing of our synagogues and daycare centres and daily protests of hate in this, the lucky country, which is lucky no more.

And for those 2½ years as the Australian Jewish community and others have raised alarm bells, they were told by people who should know better that this was not as significant as they had said.

We were told they didn't say "Gas the Jews" on the steps of the Opera House; they simply said, "Where are the Jews?"

A vice-chancellor at one of our leading universities [the Australian National Univer­sity] when told one of her students went out publicly and supported a listed terrorist organisation replied, I may not agree with what she has said, but it's her right under academic freedom to say it.

We had the nurses in Bankstown calling for the death of Israelis and we were told it's just a joke. Then we had a caravan, initially thought to be loaded with explosives, branded with deadly messages against Jews, and we're told it was just a hoax.