‘Hijack’ fear: Jewish leader warns Sydney Biennale could become pro-Palestine platform

A prominent Jewish leader has called on governments “not to be naive” as speculation mounts that Australia’s largest arts festival in Sydney next year will be hijacked as a platform for pro-Palestinian activism.

A work commissioned by the Biennale of Sydney. The taxpayer-funded 25th Biennale of Sydney continues to create waves after the appointment of artistic director Hoor Al Qasimi. Picture: Document Photography.

A prominent Jewish leader has called on governments “not to be naive” as speculation mounts that Australia’s largest arts festival in Sydney next year will be hijacked as a platform for pro-Palestinian activism.

The taxpayer-funded 25th Biennale of Sydney continues to create waves after the appointment of artistic director Hoor Al Qasimi, a Sharjah royal whose father – the ruler of the UAE Emirate – once said “the Zionist presence in Palestine is a cancerous growth within the heart of the Arab nation”.

The Daily Telegraph can reveal the Sharjah ruler’s wife - Hoor Al Qasimi’s mother - also expressed anti-Israel sentiments in an outburst four years ago.

Biennale of Sydney artistic director Hoor Al Qasimi with her father, the Sharjah ruler, Sheikh Dr. Sultan Bin Muhammad Al Qasimi. Picture: Supplied

The Middle East Monitor reported how Sheikha Jawaher Bint Mohammed Al Qasimi had “criticised the UAE’s cooperation with Israel in the education field”.

The two ministries of education had been discussing student exchanges and joint academic studies.

“Their (the Israelis’) curriculum encourages the killing of Arabs and stealing Arab lands,” the Sheikha said in a social media post.

The Middle East Monitor continued: “Sheikha Jawaher’s tweet is the most prominent and explicit objection to have emerged from the ruling circles in UAE against cooperation with Israel.”

Sydney Biennale community ambassador Claudia Chidiac reposted a call protesting against a Sydney Festival sponsorship deal with the Israeli embassy in 2022. Picture: Instagram.

In a further concern for members of the Jewish community who spoke to The Telegraph on condition of anonymity, the Biennale’s two community ambassadors – Claudia Chidiac and Paula Abood – supported a campaign to boycott the Sydney Festival in 2022 over a sponsorship deal with the Israeli embassy.

“Appointments in the arts and culture sector, especially for projects which are taxpayer-funded, should ... not be influenced in any way by virtue-signalling,” Executive Council of Australian Jewry co-chief executive Peter Wertheim said.

“We have seen a number of instances where appointees ... have proceeded to make outrageous public statements, which has come back to harm the reputation of the organisations that appointed them.

Executive Council of Australian Jewry co-chief executive Peter Wertheim. Picture: Nikki Short

“Many taxpayers understandably resent having their taxes conscripted into the service of anti-Israel and other anti-western causes with which they profoundly disagree. Governments operating in this sector need to be far less naive about this.”

Addressing the comments by Sheikha Jawaher Bint Mohammed Al Qasimi, Mr Wertheim said: “The European Parliament has repeatedly condemned the Palestinian Authority for including anti-Jewish hate content and other material which glorifies terrorism in its school textbooks.

“No study has ever found Israeli school textbooks to include content that incites hatred or violence against any group. Once again, Israel has been wrongly accused.”

Artist Tim Storrier last month said woke politics had hijacked the Australian arts scene while pro-Palestinian activism was allowing the “appalling beast of anti-Semitism” to emerge unchallenged.

The Daily Telegraph approached the Biennale of Sydney public relations firm Articulate, requesting interviews with Ms Chidiac and Ms Abood, receiving no response.

NSW Minister John Graham said the state government was always focussed on maintaining social cohesion.

Federal Arts Minister Tony Burke said he did not support ministerial interference in decisions by Creative Australia, which funds the Biennale of Sydney as the government’s arts investment body.