Craig Foster refuses to back away from Gaza after Nova Peris quits Australian Republic Movement
Australian Olympian Nova Peris says Craig Foster, her co-chair of the Australian Republic Movement was ‘associating with people who have hatred of this country’ over his take on Gaza.
Athlete and former Labor senator Nova Peris has said her relationship with fellow co-chair of the Australian Republic Movement Craig Foster was “no longer workable”, in an emotional interview in which she stressed she had a duty as an Aboriginal person to stand up against all forms of racial discrimination.
On Tuesday Ms Peris said she was unable to continue in her role with ARM after Foster published an open letter to FIFA and Football Australia calling for Australia to back the suspension of Israel from international football.
Mr Foster responded on Wednesday, saying: “Nova Peris is entitled to her views, as we all are. For reasons that are her own, she has decided that Australians should not be talking about the devastating human rights impacts of the conflict.”
Ms Peris took umbrage with his suggestion that she was telling Australians not to speak up about the conflict in Gaza, saying it was “untrue”.
“Now that’s untrue. I went to Israel. I saw it for myself .. the atrocities of October 7 have never left my mind after bearing witness and speaking to families who still have hostages that are being held by Hamas,” she told Sydney’s 2GB radio.
“Absolutely everyone should have a moral obligation to be speaking out how people are treated... but when people are using the word genocide and apartheid... I have a duty I feel as an Aboriginal person who has always stood against all forms of racial discrimination, and I hate the rise of antisemitism in this country and I feel for the Jewish people and everyone who has been affected ... It’s not good for our future generations to see this kind of hatred towards a race of people.”
Ms Peris said this hatred was “making this country really ugly”.
She said while his comments were not made on behalf of the Republican movement, Mr Foster was “associating himself with people who have such hatred of this country”.
“Well when you have people like the Australian Palestinian Advocacy Network, Nasser Mashni, holding up Craig’s commentary and saying thank you Craig Foster, brilliant what you’re doing to attempt to ban Israel from soccer.
“A few weeks ago he came out and said Israel and Australia share two things in common aside from being a shithole racist settler colony, they also have the highest incidence of skin cancer.”
“You get these Palestinian people who are burning flags but also holding up signs that say ‘kill the Australian in your head’ so Craig is associating himself with people who have such a hatred of this country ... I love this country.”
“It wasn’t workable for us going forward because I disagree with many of the things where he stands.
She said she was still very passionate about the Republican movement in Australia.
Mr Foster’s letter, posted on his Instagram page five days ago to almost 30,000 followers, said FIFA’s statutes called upon the organisation “to promote and protect the human rights of your members and use your leverage with all stakeholders, including governments, to protect the human rights of both those within football, and without”.
“Given that more than 100 conflicts exist currently, the question is, when must global sport act?” he wrote. “The answer must be when the gravest crimes against humanity of apartheid and genocide are being committed or, as in the present case, a clear duty exists to prevent them.”
Peris said some of Foster’s words were “flat-out wrong”.
“I don’t believe inaccurate and divisive public statements like the one made to FIFA are appropriate,” she told The Sydney Morning Herald.
“Given our different styles of leadership and different visions on how to promote dialogue, reconciliation and social cohesion, it is untenable for me to continue alongside Craig as co-chair of the ARM and I’ll be stepping down.”
Following her resignation, Mr Foster said he wished her the best.
“Wishing Nova the greatest success and my deepest thanks for her long and distinguished service to the Republic Movement. An incredible contribution,” he said.
“There can, however be no silence when a duty to protect other humans exists for us all. Including sport.”
In a statement on X, Mr Foster said “Human rights are not something that we can pick and choose when to apply. They are universal and exist for all people at all time.
“Nova Peris is entitled to her views, as we all are. For reasons that are her own, she has decided that Australians should not be talking about the devastating human rights impacts of the conflict in Gaza. We will all have to bear witness for what we did, or didn’t do, during this important period and I support Nova as a person.
“Please be kind to her. We can all change our views and evolve in our understanding.
“What I don’t support is the idea that Australians should not be speaking up for all innocent people, around the world.”
I support, and regularly call for accountability for all parties around the world for breaches of human rights, irrespective of who, or where they are and call on all Australians, not only in sport, to do likewise. pic.twitter.com/a8x6ylcUiZ
— Craig Foster (@Craig_Foster) May 21, 2024
ARM national director and chief executive Isaac Jeffrey thanked Peris for her contributions to the organisation.
“On behalf of the Australian Republic Movement, I thank Nova for her proud support and lifelong advocacy for Australia to become an equal on the world stage through an Aussie republic,” Mr Jeffrey said,
“Her role with the organisation has helped move the country another step closer to a stronger democracy through having our own Head of State.
“We wish her well in her future endeavours and look forward to her ongoing support for an Australian republic.”
In a letter to the chair of Football Australia, the Executive Council of Australian Jewry called on the organisation to “remain politically neutral”.
“The loss of civilian lives and scale of human suffering on both sides of the conflict has indeed been appalling, and is the direct result of Hamas openly targeting Israeli civilians while shielding themselves behind Gazan civilians and civilian infrastructure,” they said.
“Quite apart from the false legal claims levelled at Israel, there is the matter of principle that FIFA and Football Australia should not involve themselves in a long-running and complex international conflict between two peoples.
“The Common love of sport is supposed to bring people together.
“We call upon Football Australia to remain politically neutral and honour the sentiment of
Australians by refusing to support any proposal to suspend the IFA from competition.
“Sport plays an essential role in bringing people together and emphasising common humanity, and it ought not to be weaponised to stoke division.”
