Local councils investigate swastika stickers
A NUMBER of local councils in Sydney's south and inner-west are investigating sightings of derogatory stickers comparing Zionism to Nazism.
CHANTAL ABITBOL
A NUMBER of local councils in Sydney’s south and inner-west are investigating sightings of derogatory stickers comparing Zionism to Nazism.
The NSW Jewish Board of Deputies (JBD) alerted the councils to the stickers last week, after it received numerous complaints from community members who had spotted the stickers around the suburbs of Marrickville, Canterbury and Botany Bay.
The stickers depict the word Zionism followed by an equal sign and a swastika symbol. Other stickers included slogans such as “Free Palestine” and “Stop Genocide in Iraq”.
A Canterbury Council official said: “Our rangers are investigating. If offending stickers are found, they will be removed.”
A Botany Bay Council spokesperson said it had also ordered rangers to inspect the area on two separate occasions, but had not encountered the offensive stickers.
“We will certainly keep an eye out for them, and if we see them, we will certainly take them down,” she said.
JBD CEO Vic Alhadeff said he knew of a number of community members who had voluntarily removed stickers.
“We certainly encourage that response and ask other members of the community to act accordingly if they come across material of a similar nature,” he said.
“A swastika is not harmless graffiti; it is the ultimate symbol of racial hatred. These slogans have no place in our society, and the board will continue to monitor the situation.”
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