Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu’s reported assertion that “anti-Israel sentiment is antisemitism” is an unacceptable attempt at moral diversion (“Albanese, Wong defend Australia’s stance on Israel following criticism from Netanyahu”, smh.com.au, December 7). While a violent attack on a synagogue is obviously antisemitic, criticism of his government’s violent oppression of others is not.
Peter Bishop, Marayong
Between the flagsCredit: Illustration: Megan Herbert
While rightly condemning the arson attack on the Melbourne synagogue, one can’t help feel that Peter Dutton’s subsequent comments – “the prime minister’s deliberate decision to seek political advantage … on this issue and play to a domestic audience of Greens voters I think has been deplorable and one of the worst things I’ve ever seen in public life” – reveal his willingness to use the tragedy in the Middle East to stoke division for his own political purposes. Australians deserve better. Paul Karlik, Springwood
Our government’s support of the recent UN vote on Israel was clearly a balanced, considered decision, joining with the vast majority of other countries and based on humanism and compassion. No further explanation is necessary to no longer blindly side with the US and other entrenched Israeli supporters.
No progress to curtail antisemitism will be achieved while Peter Dutton and others continue to conflate any criticism of Israel with antisemitism. While the PM may now be called upon to take “firm and strong action” against antisemitism, it is equally important for the opposition leader to moderate his language and to resist making unfounded accusations. Ross Butler, Rodd Point
No matter the topic, no matter the circumstances, no matter the tragedy, Peter Dutton has the same mantra; “divide and conquer”. His latest outburst blaming Albanese and the Labor government for the attack on the Jewish synagogue is disgraceful. Pity the people who take you seriously. Cecile Sartori, Carseldine (Qld)
Australia is an independent secular democracy. Our nation is not obliged to agree with other nations but is entitled to take its own path. Decisions made by our government on the international stage should not be criticised by other countries because they disagree. That is an attempt to impose and intimidate. It is especially inappropriate when Australia sides with an overwhelming majority of other nations. We have examined our conscience, now let others examine theirs. Garry Feeney, Kingsgrove
A synagogue is set on fire in Melbourne in a shameful act by ignorant, hateful, cowardly and dangerous masked men. How low can you go? Well, lower, in fact, as those regular opportunists Peter Dutton and James Paterson try to convince us that this is all the fault of the government. Never mind that four of our Five Eyes allies have also made the absolutely reasonable, just and humane call for Israel to respect international law. Do these two Coalition troublemakers really think someone who sets a synagogue alight cares one jot what our government is doing or saying? Of course not; both they and the culprits are happy to stoke division, racism and xenophobia whenever they can, and stupidly risk lives in the process. Kerrie Wehbe, Blacktown
I feel a deep sadness for the people of the Adass synagogue and other places of worship who have suffered attacks on their sacred buildings, shrines and symbols. No matter what the motives of the perpetrators and protesters, the effects are more than personal; they cut to the soul of everything people of faith hold dear. I know the feeling of devastation and heart-pounding shock to find one’s holy place has been vandalised. But in the current political climate, to label an attack on a synagogue as “antisemitic” is a rash generalisation. Those who use the term so readily in response would do well to reflect on the definition of antisemitism, lest they risk dishonouring the memory of all those who suffered and died in the Holocaust. Meredith Williams, Baulkham Hills
Once again the lies, exaggerations and scare tactics by some politicians and journalists are encouraging people to jump to conclusions before being presented with the facts. With hostages still being held by Hamas and Palestinians being massacred, it would be reassuring in Australia to see opposing groups here in Australia, including church leaders, collectively being seen and heard to put the safety of all children first. This is not a time for prejudice, misinformation and nasty comments. Empathy and truth are essential. Jenny Ingham, Manly
Australia’s voting for the UN resolution was in step with the vast majority of European countries plus Britain and Canada. However, looking at the British press, there is no mention of Britain’s ambassadors being called in for a dressing down or any other negative comments by Israel. So why the bullying by Israel directed at us? Could it possibly be facilitated by the Coalition, who seem to welcome and encourage a foreign power telling us what to do? Vanessa Lewer, Frenchs Forest
Does anyone seriously think the graffiti and bombing of synagogues in Melbourne and Sydney has nothing to do with Israel’s reaction to the shocking Hamas attack on October 7? I am absolutely against the Israel government and the genocide it is inflicting on Gaza and the West Bank. This, in turn, does not mean I condone any graffiti or attacks on synagogues or Jewish people here in Australia. Quite the opposite. Janine Burdeu, Mona Vale
Surely, the demand for blind allegiance, as insisted upon by Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu, is not just impossible for Israelis, who’ve been protesting against the Netanyahu government’s prosecution of the war in Gaza in their hundreds of thousands since almost the moment this current horror began, but is necessarily impossible for any other nation state, despite positive intentions towards Israel as a whole. One would hope that any Australian government would follow in the footsteps of Australia’s vital role in the establishment of international human rights as a key part of the United Nations after WWII and stand by a rules-based international order. Supporting human rights for all, just as opposing acts of violence in Israel, Gaza and Ripponlea, should be axiomatic for every truly democratic and just society. Colin Hesse, Nowra
About 25,000 Australians are likely to have family in Gaza and the West Bank, and given the level of destruction by Israel, many of these are likely to have lost family. On the day of the synagogue fire, 29 Palestinians were killed in an Israeli attack on a Gaza hospital, an attack on the Nuseirat camp killed at least 20 people, including children, and Israel flew attacks into southern Lebanon, in violation of the ceasefire. John Storer, Bulli
Congratulations to Australia’s Labor government for the moral courage and compassion shown in supporting the UN resolution on Palestine. Benjamin Netanyahu’s response typifies his own bullying, self-righteous and utterly vengeful attitude to human rights. The majority of global nations condemn Israel’s current leadership and the heartless brutality of the I DF. Janet Upcher, Opossum Bay (Tas)
It is regrettable that people were unable to leave Sydney’s Great Synagogue because the exit was blocked by anti-Israel protesters, and that synagogues in Melbourne have been targeted and damaged. But bad things happen to mosques and churches, and also to people in Palestine. Christian churches – Catholic, Greek Orthodox and others including the 5th century church of St Porphyrius – were destroyed in the first three months of Israeli bombing after the Hamas attack. Christian Palestinians sheltering in the church were killed and lie entombed with St Porphyrius beneath the rubble. In one year since the Hamas attack, 611 mosques and eight cemeteries were destroyed by Israeli bombs. To date, 44,000 Palestinians have been killed – blown apart, burned alive, shot or deliberately starved to death – by Israeli forces. Facing the facts of Israeli war crimes is not antisemitism. The Israeli government’s criminality has nothing to do with Judaism or Jewishness. Gayle Davies, Armidale
Thank you, David Ashton (Letters, December 7), for calling out the loony Christian mindset with that total misinterpretation of biblical theology concerning current day Israel. Such fervent erroneous thinking is rife in the US, especially among the so-called evangelicals who have much influence in that nation’s foreign policy. Our own country is not free from this same erroneous mindset. A lot more could be done to counter this false “end time” thinking. John Boutagy, Mosman
It’s good that the prime minister is opposing antisemitism so strongly. Hopefully, he will oppose genocide with equal enthusiasm. Tony Tucker, Leichhardt
Anthony Albanese is being disingenuous when he says, of our recent vote for the anti-Israel resolution at the UN, that the same resolution was supported by the Howard government for years. The Howard government supported the resolution in the years when it looked like the Oslo Accords might lead to a negotiated peace. The vote changed during the early days of the terrorist Intifada; of course the October 7 atrocities had yet to occur.
Also, this year’s resolution is considerably more condemnatory of and punitive against Israel. Sadly, by effectively rewarding Hamas terrorism and Palestinian Authority rejectionism, it will just make peace even harder to achieve. Nathalie Samia, Queens Park
Mogul’s curious development
I am shocked that Harry Triguboff, whose parents moved from Russia to China to escape antisemitism, opined that there are too many Chinese immigrants in Australia and that they will take over the place (“What Harry Triguboff really thinks about local councils and Chinese migrants”, December 6). He should be careful that statements of this nature do not become the thin wedges of racism against his own Jewish community. Nevertheless, what was the figure he had in mind as an optimum immigration quota for the Chinese? While we are at this exercise, can he also offer the optimum number of immigrants in the different racial groups he mentioned? Thiam Ang, Beecroft
Meriton founder Harry Triguboff.Credit: Arsineh Houspian
Triguboff is reported as saying “aldermen shouldn’t have the right to approve (DAs)“. “Because they’re not doing it for the good of the country, they’re doing it for the good of themselves.” So is Triguboff doing his developments for the good of the country or for his own good? Perhaps it’s the latter dressed up to look like the former, David Gordon, Cranebrook
Positive, slow progress
As a GP involved with public health network committees advising on women’s health, I am encouraged by the progress being made (Letters, December 7). A recent project of ours is to institute inhaled pain relief for often painful outpatient gynae procedures such as endometrial biopsy (a biopsy inside the uterus). The hospital staff, midwives and gynaecologists are on board but the hospital bureaucracy is slow. In 2022, 85 per cent of obstetrician/gynaecology trainees were women. In 1970, 93 per cent were men. This shift has had an inevitable effect on attitudes to women’s health. Thankfully, midwives have an increasingly greater role in decision-making and so do GPs. We have a legacy of historical neglect of women by researchers across the board in medicine. The good news is the patterns are changing, but it’s a slow process. Lucy France, Cronulla
I spent four and a half years telling doctors, a physio and a specialist that I was in pain and could barely walk. They watched me go from limping to walking stick to crutches and eventually used a walking frame. I could barely care for myself and my home. I returned to the specialist who casually said it might be my hip. Four weeks later I had a hip replacement. All those years I could have been recovering instead of becoming a cripple. The whole way through I felt I was not listened to because I am a slightly greying older woman. The whole experience has devastated me. Michele Thomas, Mollymook Beach
Real teal vote
I attended the Sydney Institute where Paul Fletcher spoke (Letters, September 7). What he questioned was how these community independents all ran in Liberal, not Labor or Green, seats. He pointed to the voting record of the teals; they voted around 75 per cent of the time with Labor/Greens. Fletcher said for stable government, a majority in the lower house is necessary, whether Labor or the Coalition, and that the teals are not truly community-based independents. A vote for a teal candidate is a vote for the Labor/Green alliance. Those who vote teal believing otherwise are only kidding themselves, no one else – so they might as well vote for the Labor Party. Dennis Bluth, Cammeray
Bradfield candidate Nicolette Boele, who will take on sitting MP Paul Fletcher.Credit: Edwina Pickles
I voted for Nicolette Boele in the last election and will do so again. It is such a novelty for us in Bradfield to be living in a marginal seat. For far too long, Bradfield has been rusted-on Liberal where people unthinkingly have placed Liberal No.1 at every election to the point where Gollum could have stood as a Liberal and been voted in. I used to write to Paul Fletcher on important issues, particularly climate change, and either I received no response or a stock standard response that addressed nothing. He calls himself a “moderate” but has stood for nothing and has always voted with the right of his party. Yes, his reaction against the teals is nothing short of a childish tantrum. Fran Brew, East Killara
Hope for ABC
Malcolm Knox’s excellent piece should be required reading for the entire ABC staff (“ABC needs its upper-middle Rogan”, December 7). As a lifelong ABC consumer, I have despaired as it has fallen from a cutting-edge to a blunt instrument, filled with tired repeats, magazine journalism and half-mast flagship programs. No doubt repeated attacks on its budget have been a factor, but so too has its tendency to be a pale everyman, pandering to the insatiability of identity politics while simultaneously trying to offend no one. The result has been an ominous decline into quicksand mediocrity. Knox identifies a pathway by which the ABC can begin to rescue itself. Let’s hope management is up to it. Wayne Duncombe, Lilyfield
Set an example
It’s said that self-praise is no recommendation and despite the Letters editor’s granting permission for all correspondents to self-nominate, humility dictates my reluctance to do so (Postscript, December 7). I am reminded of the motto of the Gosford High School badge, Spectemur Agendo – “Judge us by our actions”, and therefore let our peers judge us for our contributions. Allan Gibson, Cherrybrook
Sign me up
Well done to the Australian cricket team. Looks like they didn’t need me after all. Jeremy Brender, West Richmond (SA)
Historic record
How wonderful that Peter Norman’s 56-year-old 200m record was broken by a Sudanese-Australian teenager (“Gout Gout cruises past the field”, December 7). Norman, a man committed to equality, who stood in solidarity beside Tommie Smith and John Carlos as they made their human rights salute at the Mexico Olympics, would surely have been cheering Gout Gout on. Yvette Andrews, Canterbury
Gout after his remarkable run in the 200-metre final.Credit: Getty Images
Real risk for environment
Thank you to Nick O’Malley and Bianca Hall for moving past the political commentary and highlighting what Anthony Albanese’s kiboshing of the Environment Protection Australia deal really risks – our environment (“Albanese-Plibersek clash risks more than just politics – our biodiversity might be at stake”, December 7). Our biodiversity is at stake. With an ever-growing threatened species list of over 2000, Australia’s ecosystems and wildlife are in severe decline. On behalf of the majority of Australians, I call on the prime minister and the government to follow through on their promise and revisit environmental law reform in 2025. Amy Hiller, Kew (Vic)
The last-minute shelving of the popular nature-positive laws was a very disappointing end to the parliamentary year. In 2020, Labor promised to “administer Australia’s environmental protection laws to better protect nature, while supporting sustainable development”. Over 30,000 submissions were received supporting stronger environmental laws. Since then, Plibersek has worked hard to negotiate an agreement with the Greens on this legislation, which includes stricter controls on illegal land clearing. But at the eleventh hour, after conferring with WA Premier Roger Cook, the PM changed his tune. It seems progress on environmental protections has been overridden by mining interests and the need for safe Labor seats in WA. This is a sad loss for Australia’s iconic threatened species and for the vast majority of Australians who favour stronger environmental protections. Anne O’Hara, Wanniassa (ACT)
New Guinea, old fans
Papua New Guinea’s devotion to rugby league is not new (“Forget ping-pong. When competing with China, it’s rugby league diplomacy that matters”, December 7). I remember when I was helping with the aftermath of the 1998 Aitape tsunami, I was invited to watch one of the State of Origin matches on a little TV. The whole village cheered on the maroons, who won. League is truly the national sport of PNG and the admission of their team to the NRL is a master stroke of diplomacy. Andrew Macintosh, Cromer
Moving recap
What a cracker of a farewell article (“How Sydney’s property market was transformed in my 12 years of Title Deeds”, December 7)! The world of high-end realty laid bare – who knew it involved money laundering, jailbird fire sales and illegal destruction of heritage buildings? A fitting segue to reporting with the redoubtable Kate McClymont. Thanks Lucy. Liz Crosby, Darlington
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