Greens Senators Stage Walk out of Australian Parliament Over Gaza Ceasefire

Greens Senator Janet Rice holds a Palestinian flag during a walk out by the Greens during Question Time in the Senate chamber at Parliament House in Canberra, Australia, on Nov. 6, 2023. AAP Image/Mick Tsikas

All 11 Greens senators have walked out of the Australian Senate during question time to protest the government’s refusal to call for a ceasefire in the Israel-Hamas conflict.

Senator Mehreen Faruqi accused the opposition Coalition of being “morally bankrupt” and labelled the governing Labor Party as “heartless, gutless, and powerless” in their language and approach to the war.

“You are watching the massacre of thousands of Palestinians by Israel and you are not condemning Israel,” she said.

“You refuse to call for an immediate ceasefire. We are not going to sit here and watch you pat yourself on the back for doing nothing. Weasel words are not going to stop war crimes.

“Today, we bring the people’s protest into Parliament.”

Ms. Faruqi then raised her fist and shouted “Free, free Palestine” before walking out, followed by all of her fellow party senators.

Trade Minister Don Farrell, who is currently standing in for Prime Minister Anthony Albanese while he visits China, said Israel needs to observe international rules of law and innocent people should not pay for the horrors perpetrated by Hamas.

But he also rejected the comments put forward by Ms. Faruqi and suggested that the Greens were trying to take advantage of the situation.

“I don’t think any particular political party seeking to make hay out of this terrible situation is going to advance the position in Australia,” he said.

“Whether it’s the Coalition trying to take political advantage of it or the Greens.”

It comes after former Prime Minister Scott Morrison warned the international community against being “suckered” into a ceasefire with Hamas.

“I don’t support a ceasefire,” he told media in Israel.

“A ceasefire would simply advantage Hamas to be able to strengthen their positions and make this awful war go on for even longer ... this is the play from Hamas, and we’ve got to be careful not to be suckered into it.”

Australia also abstained from voting in a United Nation’s resolution calling for a humanitarian truce in Gaza.

The representative of Australia to the UN, Ambassador James Larsen, said Australia abstained due to the failure to name Hamas as the perpetrator of the Oct. 7 attack that triggered the war.

Meanwhile, Mr. Albanese has reiterated on several occasions that Australia supported Israel’s right to defend itself and that Labor has always believed in a two-state solution.

The prime minister, who recently spoke with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, said every life mattered, both Israeli and Palestinian.

“We say that Israel has a right to defend itself, but how it defends itself matters and we want to see all innocent lives protected. Every life matters,” he said on Nov. 1.

Greens leader Adam Bandt led a motion in the lower house to condemn Israel for launching air attacks on the Gaza strip, which was later defeated.

It came after Mr. Albanese’s motion that condemned Hamas’ terrorist attacks in Israel.

“We must face what has happened and what is now unfolding with complete moral clarity,” he told Parliament on Oct. 16.

“Hamas terrorists committed mass murder on a horrific scale.”