Matt Gregg (Deakin, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

I rise this evening to share my grief and shock and that of my community in Deakin at the horrific antisemitic attack at Bondi Beach on 14 December. Fifteen lives so cruelly and hatefully ended—15 innocent people who should still be with their friends and family; 15 people who should have been able to practise their faith openly and with pride, not fear. The violent hatred unleashed on 14 December will forever leave its mark on the victims' families and communities. I extend my solidarity and support to Jewish Australians, and I've received countless calls and emails from members of my community who feel just as strongly—shocked, angry and wanting to see change happen, and I share that sentiment.

Of course, the impact of this horrific terrorist attack has reached every corner of this country. It has touched everyone who feels more hesitant about openly practising their faith, going to places of worship or even going to public spaces. It has touched everyone who walks down the street and feels like a stranger in their own community, avoiding eye contact and keeping to themselves where previously they greeted others with a smile.

The evil of terrorism cuts lives short. It leaves the lives that remain strained, and the bonds that bind us together stretched to their limit and threatening to break. It can push us to retreat from one another—to close ourselves off from our fellow Australians. Terrorism challenges our belief in the fundamental goodness of humanity, a belief that underpins our ability to live our lives freely and with security. But I believe these bonds ultimately won't break. I believe that our desire to help each other, to be there for each other, is stronger than the fear that those two hateful antisemites poured into our country on 14 December.

We've already seen this in the emergency service workers and volunteers all around the country fighting floods, weeks after volunteers on the beach in Bondi did everything they could to save lives in an extraordinary effort. Australians from all backgrounds are expressing their sorrow, supporting their fellow Australians and doing what they can to make this country a better place. That is the country I know, that is the country I love and that is the country we have to defend.

Terrorism aims to sow mistrust, fear and division; to make us turn against our neighbour; and to make us a little less ourselves. If we're going to succeed in defeating this horrible phenomenon, we need to double down on who we are, on our values, and make sure that we are unapologetically Australian in the way we go about this, without forgetting who we are fundamentally but understanding that lines must be drawn—that hate speech is unacceptable and that it is not acceptable that members of the Jewish community do not feel like they can live their lives in safety and security as open and proud Jews in our society. That strikes at the heart of what our society is, and we have to do everything we can, beyond words and beyond expressions of sentiment, to make sure that these feelings turn into action. While reactionism isn't the call for the day, we do need to make sure that there is a response. We have to learn the lessons of history once again.

Sadly, antisemitism is not new. That lie that has recurred throughout history—that turns neighbour on neighbour, that turns truth into conspiracy and that makes others suspicious of one another for no good reason—is something that has repeated itself throughout history. We have seen it become particularly pervasive following 7 October. We've got to make sure that we are doing everything we can as leaders—not just as legislators but as people who have influence in our communities and who are selected by our communities to represent them—to make sure that we are setting the right example, taking the right approach, knowing when there is a moment for debate and when there are moments for deliberation and knowing that, when tough decisions have to be made, we sometimes have to look at different competing rights and principles and make tough calls. That's what leadership is. It is very easy to demand leadership from others, but we do have to display it ourselves. There is going to be a lot of work in the days ahead to measure up to the goodness and kindness exhibited by the Australian people all this time and the good sense exhibited by the Australian people, that we are strengthened by embracing one another, taking care of each other and showing love to one another during these very difficult times.

I wish I could give words of comfort, but I don't think this is the time for us to feel comfortable. We should be uncomfortable. As long as antisemitism lives on, we should feel uncomfortable. We should feel it as a call to action and do everything we possibly can to end this horrible scourge on our society. It shouldn't have taken a horrible event like this to turn our minds to it, but now there is no more room for doubt. There is no more time for delay. There are no more excuses. We have to act.

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