Terrified Holocaust survivor begs unis to ditch ‘soft’ stance on protests

A Queensland Holocaust survivor, whose parents hid in ceilings to avoid being shot while other relatives were murdered in gas chambers, says she has “never seen this level of antisemitism” since fleeing Hungary over 75 years ago.

A Queensland Holocaust survivor has “never seen this level of antisemitism” since fleeing Hungary over 75 years ago, after seeing pro-Palestine university protests in multiple states.

The Queensland Jewish Board of Deputies claims the number of reported incidents of antisemitism in the state has peaked in the past six months alone, with figures for this period surpassing any recent annual record of reported antisemitic incidents.

Deakin University ordered the immediate clear-out of an activist encampment at its Burwood campus in Melbourne on Tuesday, the first Australian university to take the step.

Former federal treasurer Josh Frydenberg, who has Jewish parents and is a proud member of the Jewish community, called for all Australian universities to follow suit.

There has also been allegations of violence and misconduct against pro-Palestine protesters at Melbourne’s Monash University and the Australian National University.

But the University of Queensland refuses to budge on its preference to negotiate with camped protesters.

Suzi Smeed had relatives killed in gas chambers. She says she is “terrified” by the level of antisemitism in Australia at the moment. Picture: Patrick Woods.

Hungarian Holocaust survivor Suzi Smeed, 82, is “terrified” by the events of last week.

On Thursday, UQ’s St Lucia campus saw a window smashed with a bollard during a pro-Palestine rally, although Students for Palestine – who organised the protest – said the person who smashed the window was not a member of their group.

No one was injured, but police continue to investigate and are appealing for witnesses.

Footage also emerged of pro-Palestinian students at UQ saying they would be terrorists if involved in the Israel-Gaza conflict, before later saying they would “probably” join Hamas.

Students for Palestine later said the pair in the video are no longer members of the group.

Ms Smeed criticised universities for “giving very soft answers that they can’t do anything”, urging them to “clean out these camps” like Columbia University and Deakin University.

Ms Smeed’s grandparents and extended family were rounded up in Nazi-occupied Hungary during World War II. They were later murdered in gas chambers.

Ms Smeed spent time in orphanages and her parents hid in ceiling spaces as Hungarian Nazis rounded up Jews and shot them.

She came to Australia in 1948 with her parents as a six-year-old and lives in Queensland.

Ms Smeed said she was “absolutely stunned” by what happened last week.

The pro-Palestine camp at UQ in St Lucia. Picture: Liam Kidston

“I have been absolutely horrified and frightened for the Jewish students,” she said.

“I never in my wildest dreams thought this would happen again since the Holocaust.

“I’ve never seen this level of antisemitism in my lifetime [since the Holocaust].

“I cannot believe in this wonderful and safe country I came to as a Holocaust survivor, suddenly this country has been turned upside down.”

Ms Smeed said whenever she speaks at schools, she always ends her speech by saying: “The Holocaust did not start with killing, it started with words.”

“I think the government has a lot to answer for. They didn’t stop what happened on October 9 at the Sydney Opera House [pro-Palestine protest],” she said.

“I also think a lot of these students don’t read history. I think the heads of the universities should be ashamed that they have not done anything about this.

“The universities have been giving very soft answers that they can’t do anything about it, but they can. They are doing it in America at Columbia University.”

Pro-Palestine supporters and Jewish students have established separate campsites at the University of Queensland at St Lucia. Picture: Richard Walker

A UQ spokeswoman said the university’s position remained unchanged, and declined to directly respond to Deakin’s decision.

“As a matter of priority, we are working with camp organisers to de-escalate the current situation and agree a plan for how we support freedom of speech in a way that ensures the safety and wellbeing of our community and does not impact on our operations,” she said.

“We have increased security on campus in response to the camps and there was an active police and security presence on site for [last Thursday’s] protest rally.

“UQ is continuing to investigate the unacceptable behaviour of one individual at the rally and has reported the matter to police, who are also helping to verify whether those involved are part of our UQ community.”

Suzi Smeed criticised universities for “giving very soft answers that they can’t do anything”, and said they should be “ashamed”. Picture: Patrick Woods.

Queensland Jewish Board of Deputies president Jason Steinberg said the number of reported incidents of hatred against Jews has reached record levels in Queensland.

He said the highest recorded number of reported antisemitic incidents in recent times was 49 reported occurrences in 2018.

From October to March, more than 70 incidents were reported, including physical violence, verbal abuse, graffiti, social media abuse and targeting of Jewish-owned businesses.

Mr Steinberg called on UQ, and all universities, to stop hate flourishing on their campuses.

“Whatever someone’s view about the current war between Israel and Hamas terrorists, there is no excuse for bringing the hatreds of that war into Queensland,” he said.

“This is abhorrent behaviour and should be a concern to every Queenslander.

“While lawful free speech is an important cornerstone of our democracy, when you have violent threats and intimidation against Jews and open support for terrorists it is hard not to see that hatred is flourishing at UQ.”

Prior to last week, a Jewish academic’s office at UQ was targeted on May 1 with the intruder “urinating” on the floor and posted signs saying “resign”. Police fined a 23-year-old West End woman for trespassing. Students For Palestine also denied any involvement in this incident.

A flag of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine was also seen flying alongside other banners around the Students For Palestine camp at UQ on May 1. The PFLP is a designated terrorist organisation in the US, Canada and European Union. The flag was later taken down at the UQ camp.