Ministers statements: community safety
Ingrid STITT (Western Metropolitan – Minister for Mental Health, Minister for Ageing, Minister for Multicultural Affairs) (12:07): Victorians and indeed Australia’s Jewish community have been shocked by revelations that a number of antisemitic attacks, including the horrific firebombing of Adass Israel Synagogue in Ripponlea, were orchestrated by agents of the Iranian Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. These targeted antisemitic attacks have been made to sow division, fuel hatred and harm our proud Jewish community. I commend our Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and Foreign Minister Penny Wong for their swift response and leadership. To our Jewish community and the Adass Israel community in Ripponlea: we stand with you. Your daily lives continue to be affected by this abhorrent attack and the dramatic increase in antisemitism that you have been subjected to. I say this: you have the right to practise your religion, be proud of who you are and not have to look over your shoulder in fear. The past two years have seen an unprecedented breakdown in our community’s harmony. This is a stark reminder that there are actors who seek to stoke division and harm what is so precious in our multicultural and diverse society. We must always stand against hate, against division, against antisemitism and against violence.