Jewish leaders condemn Labor support for Greens in Dunkley by-election fight
Colin Rubenstein says Labor needs to examine its support for the Greens after incidents involving its members that amounted to ‘open anti-Semitism’.
Jewish leaders have urged Labor to stop preferencing the Greens after the ALP placed the minor party second on its how to vote card for the Dunkley by-election.
While the Greens candidate in the by-election is Jewish, his views on Israel are aligned with the federal party in calling for an end to the Jewish state’s “genocide in Gaza” and for Australia to withdraw support of the invasion.
Australia/Israel and Jewish Affairs Council executive director Colin Rubenstein said Labor needed to examine its support for the Greens after incidents involving its members that amounted to “open anti-Semitism”.
“While the ALP may have traditionally preferenced the Greens, this should change in the face of the extremism and sometimes open anti-Semitism coming from Greens parliamentary representatives since October 7,” he told The Australian.
“Any party whose representatives speak of Jewish ‘tentacles’ controlling society or shout the genocidal Hamas-linked demand ‘from the river to the sea, Palestine will be free’, tantamount to the destruction of Israel, should be regarded as beyond the pale.”
NSW Greens MP Jenny Leong apologised in February after comments she made earlier that the Jewish lobby groups had “tentacles” that attempted to “influence power”, insisting she had not intended to reference a historic anti-Semitic cartoon of an octopus.
Greens Dunkley candidate Alex Breskin criticised the Jewish groups that have raised the concerns for suggesting that Labor should instead be preferencing “right-wing groups with documented links to neo-Nazis”.
“I’m proud to be part of the growing crowd of Jewish voices calling for an end to Israel’s genocide in Gaza, and for Australia to stop supporting the invasion,” he said. “It is beyond disappointing that a group that claims to represent Jewish people is encouraging a vote for right-wing groups with documented links to neo-Nazis, instead of a Jewish candidate for a party that proudly opposes anti-Semitism and racism in all its forms.”
Australian Jewish Association chief executive Robert Gregory has also called on Labor to rethink its preference deal with the Greens, describing the Dunkley by-election as a “litmus test” that it had failed as the Jewish community grappled with a “surge of anti-Semitism”.
“The Greens have been identified as among the chief instigators and there have been growing calls for all political parties to place them last on how to vote cards,” he said.
“Anti-Semitic stunts from Greens MPs like Jenny Leong and Mehreen Faruqi have been condemned by Labor. These condemnations have proven empty words because when it comes down to it, Labor still recommends voters place the Greens second out of eight candidates.
“This shows a complete disregard for the Jewish community.”
Senator Faruqi came under fire in November after she deleted an image of her standing beside a sign held by a protester that showed a Star of David being placed in a bin with the slogan “keep the world clean”.
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