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| The pain we have all felt for the past two years cannot be soothed by division and hatred. |
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Cohesion, Compassion and Peace in Gaza
Jamal RifiIs a general practitioner
In Western Sydney
“Too many lives have been lost, families torn apart and futures eviscerated. I call on my fellow Australians to work together to safeguard our vibrant multiculturalism, social harmony and tolerance of one another and differing views. It is an important part of what makes our country what it is”.
It has been a difficult two years for Australia, this much is clear. The values we hold dear and the ties that have for generations bound our community of communities have been tested like never before.
The challenges are not unique to Australia. We see the same fracturing in societies across our like-minded allies in Europe. It has, of course, been immeasurably more difficult for those in the Middle East whose proximity to the conflict, and its violence and death, is far closer than ours. This includes those lives lost on October 7, 2023, and the continued anguish of Israelis with loved ones still held by Hamas in Gaza, It also includes my country of birth, Lebanon, where Israel’s strikes in the south and Beirut tore apart families and ripped through homes.
There is no clearer impact, however, than the continued suffering, starvation and death of tens of thousands of innocent civilians in Gaza. They have, through no fault of their own, tragically borne the full brunt of a war they did not choose and cannot escape. More than 60,000 Palestinians have lost their lives since war broke. At least 1.9 million people in Gaza – about 90 per cent of the population – have already been displaced, according to the United Nations, which has said serious famine and widespread malnutrition are playing out in the Strip.
Those images have shocked the world, leaving us heartbroken. For many Western leaders, it was a horror too far. I have watched and welcomed the momentum that has built around the recognition of Palestinian statehood, including the intervention this month by Anthony Albanese and Penny Wong. As the minister for foreign affairs was at pains to convey, there is an increasing risk that if statehood is not afforded now, there simply will not be one to recognise in the future. I echo Senator Wong’s message that this move may be one of the last chances remaining to break this cycle of violence, to isolate Hamas – which is more likely given recent sentiment by the Arab League and promises by the Palestinian Authority- and sow the seeds for a just and lasting peace. Attempts to portray the government’s move as capitulating to Hamas- whether by the media, our politicians or otherwise- appear to forget or disregard that the move is in step with allies in Europe and Canada. It seems indifferent to the thinking that this may be a final chance, a view shared by the Arab League, Prime Minister Albanese and Senator Wong.
Although we are oceans from the conflict, it is clear at most Australians care deeply about the tragic human suffering. We want the war to end, the right of the Palestinian people to self-determination recognized, and for Israelis and Palestinians to live side by side in a just, lasting peace.
While perhaps there is divergence on how to achieve this, and varying degrees on how we communicate that too many innocent people have been killed for this to continue a day longer. The march across the Sydney Harbour Bridge earlier this month reflects that sentiment.
In September, it appears almost certain that France, the United Kingdom, Canada and Australia will recognise Palestinian statehood. Yet I watched as the prime minister’s move was met by anger and vitriol in some circles. There were those in the media and the Israeli government who said the decision rewarded terrorism. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called the prime minister weak and revoked visas for Australia’s representatives to the Palestinian Authority – in part a response to Australia sensibly revoking the visa of right-wing Israeli politician Simcha Rothman.
On the other end of the spectrum there were those who attacked Albanese not because they are against Palestinian statehood but because they support it and now say it is “not enough”. For this group, contempt for this government binds them in permanent opposition to anything it does. They have little – or a warped – understanding of the conflict and certainly have no skin in the game.
While they are of course entitled to their own view, they are not entitled to tell Palestinians – in the occupied territories or here in Australia – what they can and cannot support. These people have done nothing to help Gazans here in Australia, or to support the Palestinian Authority or bodies working to improve life for Palestinian currently sheltering through this horrendous war. I remind these actors that Palestinians have worked for decades for this recognition of their self-determination. This all comes as Australia prepares for the two-year anniversary of October 7, where we will mourn lives lost and the ensuring violence. This will include the bloodshed on that day in southern Israel and each day thereafter in Gaza.
As we saw last year, exacerbated by Israel’s September strikes on Beirut, there will be pain, grief, emotions and fear, division. Although this is not reflected in the media coverage, I am encouraged by quiet conversations happening out of the public eye between leaders from our Muslim and Jewish communities.
These conversations have sought to reopen dialogue, share perspectives and repair the splinters that have emerged in our social harmony and between our communities. These conversations continue and go to the heart of what it means to be Australian. We can strongly disagree, but we can do so with goodwill, to ensure that the vibrant multiculturalism many of us hold dear is protected. Most Australians-of any background and creed-reject the extremism on both sides of this conflict.
This faith in like-minded Australians was vindicated by the Labor’s resounding election victory in May. Where some leaders and parties sought to talk in dogma during the election, they stumbled. Where the prime minister sought to unite Australians in common decency, he succeeded. Both federal and statement governments have made efforts to build bridges and strengthen social cohesion. Take, for example, the $4 million provided by the Albanese government this year to Australian-run West Bank-based Rozanna, for it to do two vitally important things that go to strengthening key institutions in the future state of Palestine. First, assisting the completion of an urgently needed dedicated rehabilitation centre in Hebron, which will provide prosthetics and rehabilitation to child amputees from Gaza, with staff training provided by Israeli professionals and second to expose leadership of the Palestinian health sector to Australia’s world leading experience in addressing key public health challenges. Rozanna- an organisation I am close to and whose board I was on until late last year – is an example of efforts to focus on that which unites us. Founded by my friend Ron Finkel, a Melbourne based Jewish leader, its board contains leaders from both the Jewish and Islamic faiths. It has offices in Tel Aviv and Ramallah and seeks to improve the medical outcomes from Palestinians through the efforts of both Israelis and Palestinians. This shows how Australia can and is helping build the future of a Palestinian state. Initiative like this do little to please extremist voices on whichever wing. While there are many good people, others have instead been opportunistic and sought to play on people’s anger and emotion. This has led to division and done little to remedy rising anti-Semitism and Islamophobia in Australia.
Last week, the New South Wales government announced $1million in funding to address rising Islamophobia and support an initiative run by the Australian National Imams Council. This much needed funding comes after Premier Chris Minns has been strongly against all forms of hatred, including that targeting our Jewish community. Yet the move was met on social media by a frenzy of negativity from those who had directed their same anger towards the prime minister when he announced he would recognise statehood.
It was not anger at the funding in and of itself but rather at the fact it came from our government, which can do no good and nothing right in the eyes of some. These people target those in my own community who, unlike them, want to work with governments to improve conditions both here in Australia and the Middle East.
Aftab Malik, Australia’s special envoy to combat Islamophobia, whose longstanding work in this space predates his appointment, is also a frequent target for those who refuse to compromise an inch of ground for their “cause”. These people will never be happy. They have little care for social cohesion in Australia and little understanding of the issues at play in the Middle East. They seek only to pursue their own personal ends, to stir up emotion and weaken our harmony.
For these armchair pundits and keyboard warriors – who have done little on the ground here and nothing for the people or communities affected in the Middle East- it is their way or the highway. We saw this acutely in the lead-up to and during the recent federal election. No compromise will ever be enough for these people. There was a target on my own back for deciding to actively support the Labor Party, which has been a friend of our community and a driver of Palestinian statehood. Fellow supporters of Palestine were targeted for the offence of not agreeing with each of the tactics and views of these angry agitators. Their cause rang hollow when the country’s only candidate of Palestinian background, Basem Abdo, was successful for the Labor Party in Calwell.
Support for Palestine falls flat when hatred blinds you in opposition to an intelligent emerging leader who understands more about the territories and its people than most. Basem comfortably won despite vile rhetoric and tactics. Luckily, fair-minded voters were intelligent enough to see through this. On recent trips to federal parliament in Canberra, I have been enthused by what I hear and see from our government and members of the cabinet. They are committed to contributing – where Australia can – to a lasting and just peace between Israel and Palestine. They are committed to safeguarding and repairing Australia’s social cohesion.
I echo the sentiment shared by millions of fellow Australians: that this war must end and that the suffering of Palestinians has become – as it always has been – too much to bear. Too many lives have been lost, families torn apart and futures eviscerated – also in Israel but especially now in Gaza- for anyone to demand anything other. Our collective heart breaks over what we see everyday. I trust and support that our government will play its part and hope-if we even can-that it contributes to a real change to the benefit of both Israelis and Palestinians. I call on my fellow Australians to work together to safeguard our vibrant multiculturalism, social harmony and tolerance of one another and differing views. It is an important part of what makes our country what it is.
While we may and can disagree, we do so in a spirit of goodwill, with empathy for each other and a deep understanding that the pain we have all felt for the past two years cannot be soothed by division and hatred. |
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