Sydney, Monash unis warn students as Dreyfus refuses legal advice

Sydney and Monash universities have urged students protesting against the war in Gaza to stop using phrases such as “intifada” and “from the river to the sea”, as Attorney-General Mark Dreyfus dismissed a request from Australia’s top tertiary institutions for urgent legal advice on the slogans.

Dreyfus noted that people could already make a complaint under section 18C of the Racial Discrimination Act, under which it is an offence to “offend, insult, humiliate or intimidate another person or a group of people”, if they were concerned about the use of the phrases.

A clash developed at a pro-Palestinian encampment at Monash University on Wednesday when pro-Israel supporters attempted to storm a stage where speeches were being conducted.Credit: Justin McManus

The Group of Eight leading universities wrote to Dreyfus on Wednesday requesting formal advice on whether the pro-Palestinian call for an “intifada” was in breach of federal law.

“Intifada” is an Arabic word for popular uprising, but the Anti-Defamation League, founded a century ago to counter the vilification of Jews, argues it is a slogan that calls for indiscriminate violence against Israel.

The universities also sought guidance on calls that Palestine should be free “from the river to the sea” because of longstanding concerns the words are antisemitic and seek the destruction of the state of Israel.

Universities in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane and Canberra have all been rocked by pro-Palestinian and pro-Israel protests over the war in Gaza.

Labor minister Bill Shorten and Opposition Leader Peter Dutton have both urged university vice chancellors to do more to foster a safe campus atmosphere, as anti-war activists mirror US protest encampments at top universities across Australia.

But in a response sent to University of Sydney vice chancellor Mark Scott and his Adelaide counterpart, Peter Høj, the chair and deputy chair of the Group of Eight, Dreyfus said the government believed “no one in Australia should be targeted because of their race or religion”.

“While I do not provide legal advice, and note your members are seeking their own legal advice, I trust that the following information will be of assistance,” Dreyfus wrote.

“Section 18C of the Racial Discrimination Act 1975 makes it a civil offence to do a public act that is reasonably likely to offend, insult, humiliate or intimidate people because of their race, colour or national or ethnic origins. A person aggrieved by an alleged act of racial discrimination can make a complaint to the Australian Human Rights Commission.”

Monash is a member of the Group of Eight and had already ordered the removal of “Zionist not welcome” slogans after receiving legal advice it was vilification.

The Group of Eight had promised to act immediately to stop the use of terms such as “intifada” and “from the river to the sea” on campus if they were “in possession of authoritative, definitive and enforceable advice”.

Student organisers at the Monash protest site said the university told them on Thursday that any student using the phrases “intifada” or “from the river to the sea” could face disciplinary action.

A Monash spokesman said on Thursday it would not tolerate any racism, including antisemitism and Islamophobia.

“It is essential that the exercise of freedom of speech does not cross over into expressions that harass, vilify or intimidate others,” a spokesman said.

The university is investigating pro-Israeli and pro-Palestinian students for misconduct after police were called to clashes on campus.

Sydney University implored protesters on campus to use “clear phrases instead of slogans that are open to different interpretation or misinterpretation”.

However, the university stopped short of banning the phrases, saying it was not aware of any legal determination about the interpretation of the words.

“But we welcome the important discussions taking place and would, of course, abide by any legislative changes if they were to be made,” a spokeswoman said.

Protesters joined school students and marched from the Sydney University campus to the University of Technology Sydney, where defiant demonstrators chanted “from the river to the sea, Palestine will be free”.

Sydney University also said an increased presence of people from outside the institution meant it had had to boost security across campus and had been liaising with NSW Police to assist with crowd management. Though the protesters had been peaceful and respectful, it was investigating a few reports of inappropriate and unacceptable behaviour.

University of Melbourne student Dana Alshaer, who was born on the West Bank, said non-Palestinians at the protests who had made inflammatory comments so far should not be seen as speaking for the community.

Alshaer stressed that the camps stood for peace, as they called on universities to disclose and divest ties to weapons companies. “We have been clear when we say ‘from the river to the sea’ we mean equality and freedom for everyone,” she said.

“So of course we stand against antisemitism. But there is also a genocide going on. We stand against that.”

The Australian Human Rights Commission declined to comment about whether it had received complaints under section 18C.

Former prime minister Tony Abbott sought to water down section 18C but backed down in 2014 after a fierce community backlash.

The attorney-general added in his letter to the universities that the government remained committed to introducing religious discrimination laws – though it has indicated it will do so only if support is secured across the parliament – and anti-vilification laws.

With Sean Parnell and Paul Sakkal

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