Patrick Gorman (Perth, Australian Labor Party, Assistant Minister to the Prime Minister) Share this | Hansard source

Australians have broken hearts. Too many have broken dreams. But Australians refuse to let their society break, because that is exactly what the antisemitic terrorists of Bondi Beach want. They sought to terrorise Jewish Australians. In response, Australians have stood shoulder to shoulder with our Jewish friends and fellow citizens, including the Jewish community that has its heart in the Perth electorate. We will not let these antisemites, these terrorists, terrorise from beyond the grave or from jail, nor will we allow their actions to encourage or inspire others—because Australia's choice is to choose hope over fear and to choose kindness over division, because we know that hope overcomes hate, and light overcomes darkness. The hope of all Australians combined is stronger than the hate of these evil terrorists.

Sunday 14 December 2025 will be remembered as the darkest day in Australia's recent history. Australia at its best, with the celebration of Hanukkah on the iconic Bondi Beach, was shattered by the most un-Australian and inhumane of acts—an ISIS inspired terrorist attack on innocent Jewish Australians who were gathered in celebration. This violent expression of hatred towards Jews has affected every Australian. It changed our nation. The anger, pain and sorrow felt across Australia will be with us for the rest of our lifetimes. My thoughts are with those who are grieving, those who are injured and those who are traumatised.

Any life lost was a life too many, and today the parliament honours those who are no longer with us. We honour Matilda, Rabbi Eli Schlanger, Boris Tetleroyd, Boris Gurman, Sofia Gurman, Reuven Morrison, Edith Brutman, Marika Pogany, Rabbi Yaakov Levitan, Peter Meagher, Tibor Weitzen, Alexander Kleytman, Dan Elkayam, Adam Smyth and Tania Tretiak.

I also pay tribute to the bravery of those who responded—police, paramedics and civilians rushing people to hospital, helping secure Bondi, providing crisis and counselling support—and to those who are there for the long term, providing the support that is needed not just over weeks or months but over years. It has been my sad honour to work with the Prime Minister and the Council for the Order of Australia to establish the Bondi special honours list so we can honour the heroes. Australians can nominate them, and they can shine a light on the good, shine a light on the best, of Australia.

What happened at Bondi Beach affected all of Australia, and the conversations I've had have broken my heart. The fear and distress across Australia, including in my electorate of Perth, is significant. And I say again very clearly: I stand with the Jewish community in Perth.

I want to thank all community leaders, including Dr Michael Levitt as President of the Jewish Community Council of Western Australia. The leadership from office holders in the Jewish community has been extraordinary. I join with them in saying once again: there is no place for antisemites, for terrorists or for hatred—no place in our schools or universities, no place in our workplaces, no place in the Australian Public Service and no place in our health and aged-care systems—because the Australia we build together is inclusive and welcoming for all.

Australia welcomed thousands of Jewish people after the horrors of World War II. In the 1950s, in the heart of the Perth community, the suburb of Menora was created. The roads and paths are inspired by the shape of a menorah. It is a symbol of the welcoming community that you can see from space.

In 1954 at the consecration of Temple David in the Perth electorate, Rabbi Dr Herman Sanger said the following: 'The storied past of the Jewish people is full of struggle, suffering and martyrdom, if we view it superficially. When more deeply and truly understood, our whole history is a monumental record of creativeness, from the Decalogue of Moses to the thought of Einstein. It is a unique story of stubborn survival that transforms 40 centuries into one saga of faith and hope and the triumph of life over everything.' That triumph of life over everything is what I carry in this place following this most devastating of acts. And for life to triumph, we must act. That's what I commit myself to, so we never again have to convene parliament as we have today.

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