Pro-Palestine protest hits Port Botany after rally at premier’s office

Pro-Palestine supporters have rallied for the second time in two days, protesting at Port Botany after gathering outside the office of Chris Minns on Monday.

Hundreds of Pro-Palestinian protesters gathered at Sydney’s Port Botany in the second bout of activist action in two days.

Palestinian supporters gathered on Foreshore Rd, Port Botany at 6pm on Tuesday evening to protest the loading of a Calandra, a container ship owned by an Israeli shipping company ZIM.

A note from organisers of the protest read: “ There’s no place for ZIM in Port Botany, come along tonight to put pressure on the port to suspend its contract.”

Organisers also called on the Australian government to call for a ceasefire in the war with Israel and “break its shameful silence”.

Members of the Australian Palestinian community hold placards during a protest at the Port Botany terminal. Picture: DAVID GRAY / AFP)

A police boat can be seen behind members of the Australian Palestinian community holding placards as they sit and stand on a jet ski. Picture: DAVID GRAY / AFP

It comes after supporters gathered outside the Premier’s office to protest on Monday afternoon, including a former Labor MP.

A group of over 100 protesters rallied out the front of Mr Minns’ Kogarah office on Monday, waving Palestinian flags and placards which read ‘Your local MP stands with Israel, where will you stand at next election’.

Speakers at the protest, standing on the back of a ute and toting megaphones, claimed Mr Minns was a “hypocrite", lashing him for “complaining” about the million-dollar cost of rostering on extra police for weekend protests and for not speaking out in favour of a ceasefire.

“You reek of hypocrisy, calling for peace and condemning acts of resistance but when calling for a ceasefire, you have a voice but it stays silent,” one organiser addressing the premier said, to cheers from the crowd.

The group, who chanted “shame, shame”, also urged the premier to “support an immediate ceasefire”, and to acknowledge that Palestinians deserve to “live in dignity and be protected from ongoing human rights violations”.

A pro-Palestinian protest outside the office of Chris Minns. Picture: TNV

Premier Chris Minns declined to comment on the protest out the front of his office when contacted.

Former Labor MP Shaoquett Moselmane, who previously called Gaza “the world’s largest open-air prison camp” in parliament, was at the protest outside Mr Minns’ office.

Mr Moselmane was dumped from the Labor ticket ahead of the 2023 election after he was embroiled in a police sting targeting attempted foreign interference.

Mr Moselmane’s home was raided in 2020 as part of an investigation into claims Chinese government agents have infiltrated Australian politics by influencing his office.

He was suspended from the Labor Party at the time but reinstated after he provided then-Leader Jodi McKay with evidence which he said proved he was not a person of interest in the investigation.

He was never charged with any crime and has consistently denied any wrongdoing. There is no suggestion he is currently being investigated.

Former MP Shaoquett Moselmane posted online about attending the protest. Picture: Monique Harmer

Sharing images of the protest on Facebook, Mr Moselmane claimed over 1000 people had attended to protest outside Mr Minns office in order to “denounce the division he created among the people of NSW”.

A heavy police presence arrived on the scene after the protest kicked off, with officers creating a barrier between the protesters and the premier’s office. No arrests were made.

It comes as the NSW Government announced a meeting between major faith leaders in NSW will be brought forward amid the divisions from the Israel-Palestine conflict spilling over into Sydney.

The first meeting of the NSW Government’s Faith Affairs Council – which was established to improve the government’s relationship with various religious and faith groups – was set to be held on December 1.

Police attended the protest but no arrests were made. Picture: TNV

The first meeting of the newly-established board will now be held this week, as authorities look to calm groups amid heightened tensions, beginning with the October 9 mass march by pro-Palestine supporters on the Opera House when it was lit up in the colours of the Israeli flag following Hamas’ terror attack.

Premier Chris Minns said the “NSW Faith Affairs Council and the NSW Government will not agree on everything, but when we disagree, we will do so respectfully”.

“What’s important is that we demonstrate our resilience as a multicultural society, that we can continue to be a strong and cohesive NSW, and we show compassion and support each other,” he said.

Multicultural Minister Steve Kamper said “more than ever, we must rely on our interfaith community to help bring us together”.

“The Faith Affairs Council provides us with a path forward through the challenging issues facing our multi-faith communities,” he said.