Jewish Liberal MP Julian Leeser has criticised a potential move by the Greens to involve Senator Mehreen Faruqi in deciding whether a probe into antisemitism at universities will come to fruition.
The Legal and Constitutional Affairs Legislation Committee is holding an inquiry to consider giving the investigation a green light.
Leeser said Faruqi had “inserted herself” into the committee, displacing Greens Senator David Shoebridge, who would normally sit in the chair.
“Senator Faruqi has already stated she thinks the inquiry is politically motivated and that further demonstrates why her participation in this inquiry is so inappropriate,” Leeser told The Epoch Times.
Faruqi has been vocal about her support for Palestine.
In July, she refused to say Hamas should be dismantled in Gaza, despite the group being listed as a terrorist organisation by Australia.
She also recently moved an unsuccessful Senate motion for all correspondence between several Jewish and Zionist organisations to be made public.
Late last year, she deleted a post on social media where she had posed, smiling, alongside a young woman holding a sign saying “keep the world clean” with an image of the Israeli flag going into a bin.
“A person who has clearly demonstrated their bias on the issue and hostility to the interests of the Jewish community should never be in a position to cross-examine witnesses in this inquiry,” Leeser said.
It comes after The Australian reported on Aug. 26 that Faruqi would replace Shoebridge on the committee.
Community Won’t Be Intimidated: AJA
Australian Jewish Association CEO Robert Gregory said Faruqi had nothing positive to add to the inquiry.“Her presence makes a mockery of the inquiry,” he told The Epoch Times.
“Victims of antisemitism may feel uncomfortable appearing before someone who conceivably shares some of the positions which are the focus of the inquiry.
Gregory accused Faruqi of deliberately attempting to derail an investigation into antisemitism.
“The Jewish community won’t be intimidated by Senator Faruqi,” he said.
“We will call out antisemitism in universities and wherever it occurs, as well as the far-left instigators who are behind most antisemitism in Australia today.”
The Commission of Inquiry into Antisemitism at Australian Universities Bill 2024 aims to establish a commission of inquiry into antisemitism at Australian universities. It would be granted the same powers as a royal commission.
According to documents submitted with the motion by Senator Sarah Henderson, there has been substantial antisemitism on campus in Australia for decades, with almost two-thirds of Australia Jewish university students experiencing antisemitism on campus.
However, since the Oct. 7 terrorist attacks by Hamas in Israel, antisemitism across the country and—particularly on university campuses—has reached unprecedented levels.
Submissions to the Senate on the issue closed on Aug. 23, with the next reporting date set for Oct. 4.
