Jacinta Allan: Victorian Premier announces anti-Semitic taskforce after hideous weekend of hate

Jewish-Australian leaders have cautiously welcomed Victorian Premier Jacinta Allan’s announcement of a new anti-hate taskforce following a spate of anti-semitic incidents in Melbourne at the weekend - but say talk must be met with action.

A Melbourne synagogue was firebombed while worshippers were inside, a Jewish-owned restaurant stormed by chanting masked protesters, and cars were vandalised across the weekend in incidents that prompted calls from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for strong action.

A 34-year-old man faced court on Sunday, accused of setting the East Melbourne Hebrew Congregation’s front doors alight while the congregation were inside marking Shabbat.

After visiting the the singed synagogue on Monday, Ms Allan said the new taskforce would bring together the Police Minister, Lord Mayor, and representatives of the city’s Jewish community to tackle the “bigger picture” of anti-Semitism across the city and state and would meet within days.

“Just as the fire came to the front door here of this shule, that it was stopped, so too must we put a stop to the hate, put a stop to anti-Semitism,” she said.

The taskforce will be in addition to a separate group established to support the community at a local level, and will advise on how Victorian Police plans to operationalise criminal components of the anti-Vilification and Social Cohesion Act.

Anti-defamation commission chair Dvir Abramovich said there had been countless announcements, roundtables and taskforces since anti-Semitism spiked following October 7, 2023, but “the chants keep echoing and the attacks don’t stop”.

He said whether or not this taskforce helps would depend on what comes next.

“A taskforce can be a turning point or a press release. It can be a meaningful tool that coordinates agencies, empowers law enforcement, and drives real change in education and community safety. Or it can be another folder on a shelf,” he said.

“What gives a taskforce its value is not the headline, but the hard work behind the scenes: how often it meets, who’s at the table, whether it listens deeply to Jewish voices, and whether it translates concern into consequences.”

He said Jewish Australians were tired, not only of anti-Semitism, “but of the sense that outrage rarely turns into action”.

“What’s needed now is not another plan for a plan. What’s needed is courage. To enforce the laws we already have. To draw moral red lines. To say, clearly and consistently, that antisemitism is not just offensive, it’s dangerous,” he said.

“So yes, this taskforce can help. But only if it becomes more than symbolism. It has to be the moment we stop managing antisemitism and start confronting it. Relentlessly. Relationally. And with the full force of our democratic values behind us.”

The Executive Council of Australian Jewry on Monday re-urged the Government to adopt its 15-point action plan to combat anti-semitism.

Rather than establishing another taskforce, the peak body for Jewish Australians in February called for a declaration of a national emergency and the establishment of a joint counter-terrorism taskforce led by a single minister who could coordinate and mobilise all relevant agencies in the fight against anti-Semitic terror.

The Coalition has re-committed to those priorities, and called on the Government to “show leadership”.

Opposition Leader Sussan Ley and shadow attorney-general Julian Leeser will travel to the synagogue on Tuesday to hear directly from the community about the “awful, hideous events of the weekend, and to reassure them of our ongoing support, our care, and our commitment”.

Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke visited the synagogue on Sunday, where he denounced all three of the anti-Semitic incidents that occurred at the weekend.

Meanwhile, the Israeli Government has taken another swipe at the Albanese government, accusing it of emboldening anti-Semitism.

A day after Mr Netanyahu called for urgent federal action, Israeli anti-Semitism minister Amichai hikli wrote to Mr Albanese, urging to him to act without delay.

In his letter, shared on X, he accused Mr ALbanese of overseeing an “alarming climate… further legitimised” by recent decisions to impose sanctions on far-right members of the Netanyahu Government.

“When synagogues are burned and Jewish businesses attacked in central Melbourne, silence sends a dangerous message: that Jewish safety is negotiable. That message is unacceptable,” he wrote.

“As Israel’s Minister for Diaspora Affairs and Combating Antisemitism, I urge you to act now - clearly, publicly, and decisively. The time for statements has passed. The time for action is now.”

Nationals leader David Littleproud on Monday said the Albanese Government had taken “too long” to be proactive around hate speech in Australia.

“Where hate has been imported into this country by those that want to bring it here, then we as federal legislators need to be stronger and louder about setting the tone, and setting the standard, and where there is a greater deterrent and consequence needed, then we should provide that as legislators,” he told ABC News.

Mr Burke on Sunday said the Labor Government had, in the last term of Parliament, “taken the strongest actions Australia has ever taken in making hate symbols unlawful and in making calls for violence and hate speech to have serious criminal penalties”.

“But the job of making sure we eliminate anti-Semitism belongs to every single one of us,” he said.

Federal Labor MP Jerome Laxale on Monday said the taskforce builds on some of the legislative changes the Government had made in the last Parliament.

“I’m sure if further response is required and recommended, that as a Government we won’t be afraid to do so,” he told ABC News.

“We put forward anti-doxxing laws in the last Parliament, they passed, we put forward these very strong anti-hate speech laws, federally they passed, and I note the New South Wales, and Victorian governments have done similar. We as a community need to stand up against anti-Semitism, be it in our daily lives, in and about our communities, but also from a legislative approach as well. And we’ve done that and we’ll continue to do so if we need to.

Shadow finance minister James Paterson said the weekend’s incidents underscored why the Government “must take a very different approach”.

“It must be much more proactive, ensure the law is enforced and there’s consequences and we have a comprehensive plan to address this cancer in the society,” he said.

“This issue will continue to fester and get worse if it’s not addressed and directly tackled head on. I want to see the government approach this with renewed vigour, if not, we’ll be proposing our own ideas.”