‘What the f..k?’: GC Mayor rejects conflict of interest claim over Israel sister city

The Gold Coast will keep a sister city agreement with an Israeli city despite pro-Palestinian petitioners demanding the Council end the long-standing arrangement following the war in Gaza.

Gold Coast City councillors have opted to keep a sister city agreement with an Israeli city despite pressure and protests from pro-Palestinian ratepayers to tear it up.

Pro-Palestinian petitioners had demanded the council end the long-standing sister city agreement with Netanya following the war in Gaza.

Security was ramped up in May for Southport councillor Brooke Patterson - a descendant of former United Nations president Herbert “Doc” Evatt who championed the creation of Israel in 1947 - after she claimed she was subjected to a “torrent of abuse” following a rowdy pro-Palestinian protest.

Gold Coast Mayor Tom Tate. Picture, John Gass

Cr Patterson said she was left “rattled” after allegedly being called “not human” and a supporter of genocide by a constituent who contacted her office.

It followed what she described as an “aggressive” demonstration at Gold Coast city hall by a group of pro-Palestine supporters calling on the council to scrap the Netanya pact.

Police were called to the meeting and escorted protesters out of the council chambers after a flag was unfurled inside.

The council on Tuesday voted to keep the sister city pact after both Cr Patterson and Mayor Tom Tate rejected claims from petitioners that they had a conflict of interest, with Cr Tate telling the meeting that “I don’t understand what the f..k they’re talking about”.

Cr Patterson read from a council governance committee report which said the Netanya agreement was a “non-political, friendship-based agreement” which should remain in place.

Cr Tate said he had spoken to the Netanya mayor who had told him the war in Gaza was “beyond her control”.

Cr Brooke Patterson. Picture: Glenn Campbell

Green-leaning councillor Peter Young was the only councillor who voted against the motion.

He said it was “a very difficult matter” but he had long-standing friends who were Palestinian and “I love them to pieces”.

“I do believe that we should be using this friendship arrangement to encourage the mayor of that city … to recognise that we have great concerns about what is going on,” Cr Young said.