Fears for anti-BDS laws
JEWISH community leaders have pressed the Victorian Labor government not to scrap “move on” laws introduced by the Liberals when in government to deal with blockades and sieges of businesses by extremists.
With Attorney-General Martin Pakula saying the powers are “draconian” and will be repealed, Jewish Community Council of Victoria president Jennifer Huppert and Zionist Council of Victoria president Sam Tatarka met with him to seek assurances about safety for businesses, like Max Brenner, which were targeted by the boycott, divestment and sanctions (BDS) movement.
Huppert and Tatarka stated the Attorney-General “sought to reassure the community of his strong opposition to the BDS campaign”, a view shared by the Premier and the Labor caucus. The Jewish leaders have assurances that the government “will continue to monitor the situation to ensure that there are no gaps in the law to protect individuals and businesses from unlawful or violent protests”.
“We trust that if there is a repetition of the violence, abuse and intimidation that marked the campaign against [Israeli chocolate shop] Max Brenner and other retailers of Israeli products, the government will not hesitate to reinstate appropriate protections,” they stated.
After a BDS siege of Max Brenner in central Melbourne in 2011, the accused all escaped charges in court, prompting then premier Ted Baillieu to introduce the powers to give police the scope to disperse blockades that cause an air of fear or violence.
Caulfield MP David Southwick last week took the fight to Parliament, asking how the government “will protect Jewish businesses and the community if they repeal new police powers to peacefully move on violent protesters who use hate-filled campaigns like the BDS movement to shut down shops and harass patrons”.
“Every Victorian has the right to protest and express their views,” he said. “However, when individuals resort to unlawful tactics that threaten the livelihood of law-abiding businesses, employees and their families, they must be held to account.”
Describing the laws as “draconian and unnecessary”, Pakula said pre-existing laws already granted police the power to move on people breaching or likely to breach the peace, endangering the safety of people or property, or causing injury or threatening public safety.
Colin Rubenstein, chief executive of the Australia/Israel & Jewish Affairs Council, called on the government to ensure that if change resulted “in a revival of BDS blockades, the legislation is further adjusted to allow people to go about their lawful business free of the discriminatory harassment the BDS campaign represents”.
PETER KOHN
A protest outside Max Brenner in Melbourne in 2011.
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