Al-Naqba Commemorative Rally and March on
NSW Police have failed to stop a march planned for Tuesday evening by Palestinian sympathisers through Sydney CBD streets at peak hour time with commuters being warned to expect delays.
Patrick Langosch pic: Henry Benjamin
Police and march organiser Patrick Langosch appeared before Justice Christine Adamson in the Supreme Court today. The hearing was deferred from 10am to 2:30pm to allow Langosch time to study police affidavits. On resumption, the protester called on three police witnesses to cross examine. He represented himself.
At the end of an unexpectedly long day Justice Adamson decided against the police, telling Langosch: “If I prohibited it, you will get more”.
Al-Nakba commemorates each May 15 what the Palestinians refer to as the day of Catastrophe which marks the establishment in 1948 of the State of Israel.
Police made submissions to the Court stating that a rally and march in the city centre at peak time would be dangerous for both commuters and the marchers. They suggested that the meeting should take place in Belmore Park or Martin Place but the Langosch refused to consider alternative venues citing existing ads on Facebook for the event.
Counsel for the NSW police said that the organiser’s attitude about not changing the venue “shows a disregard for the Supreme Court”. But the judge said that the protestors attitude that “we will not be silenced” was simply “hyperbolic”.
The judge failed to find any significant reason as to why this understood to be the first al-Nakba demonstration was being held in 2012. Langosch told the court that “it is not an option to have it on any other day than May 15” adding “the demonstration will go on regardless of the decision of the Court.” The judge agreed it that nbot holding on May 15 would be akin to holding Anzac Day on any other day other than April 25.
Justice Adamson said she would announce her reasons for the decision tomorrow morning.
During the hearing, Justice Christine Adamson referred to “the continuing grievances of the Palestinian people” in understanding the reasons for the protest.
The NSW Police have issued the following announcement:
“NSW Police Force have warned of potentially extensive traffic disruption in the CBD tomorrow night due to a planned protest.
Attempts by NSW Police to negotiate with the protesters to make alternative arrangements because of traffic management and safety concerns failed to alter the group’s proposal.
Late this afternoon (Monday 14 May 2012), the Supreme Court ruled that the protest go ahead as proposed by the group.
The notice provided by the protest organisers states their intention to hold a public assembly at Sydney Town Hall and a procession through the CBD between 5:30pm and 7:00pm.
The route of the procession is proposed to move from Sydney Town Hall, enter George Street travelling north to Market Street, proceeding east on Market Street to Pitt Street, then North on Pitt Street to King St, proceeding west on King Street to George Street and South on George St back to Town Hall.
Police and the Traffic Management Centre are working to facilitate the protest and develop traffic management plans to minimise the impact on peak hour traffic and pedestrian safety.
Police ask that motorists where possible avoid the CBD between 5pm and 7pm.”
Vic Alhadeff, the CEO of the NSW Jewish Board of Deputies told J-Wire: “As Australians, we should not be importing overseas conflicts onto the streets of Sydney. But there is a tragedy today, and it is that when the Jewish world accepted the State of Israel as decreed by the UN 64 years ago, the Arab world did not do the same. If it had, we would be celebrating a state of Palestine today which was 64 years old, just as Israel is. Isn’t it time we all moved on and explored ways to advance peace instead of dwelling on the past?”
Ben doesn’t have a problem with Palestinians , Arabs Muslims and the od Nazi { Ross “The Skull” May,]
marching in Australian streets on behalf of the poor Palestinians yet has a problem with some Jews that support Israel that do not carry on and cause havoc Australian streets.. Wheres the logic in that ?
yeh Bruce I’m sure there were many Jews marching along side the Palestinians members from AJDS, NIF, Jstreet, Loewensteins IAJV and the Jewish academics from Monash make the best Palestinian advocates.
At the end of the day Ben { or mahmoud what ever your real name] with all the marching , Boycotts and Lobbying the Pals still have no state they still live in the past , still fighting amongst themselves and Israel moves on and lead the world in most fields they enter..
Hello MIchael
Less than 150 people marching in “deserted” streets at 7 pm is causing havoc! The struggle has to continue until the injustice doen to Plaestinians is righted.
The UN partition plan of 1947 was rigged and nobody consulted the Palestinians on dividing their land to Ashkenazi Jews. Mind you, the Palestinians are the original semitic Jews who converted to Christianity or Islam as time went on. The UN partition plan didn’t call for the expulsion of Palestinians from their villages through systematic act of terror. Expelling the Palestinians was in violation of the UN partition plan. The same Zionists who paid off Western politicians to go on with partition plan, paid off King Abdallah of Jordan and Farouk of Egypt to take over the West Bank and Gaza which prevented the establishment of a Palestinian state. Don’t forget, that the Zionist went on to take far more than what the partition plan called for through conquer and terror.
you’re obviously dilusional.
Yes, 500 is my estimate. Peaceful. Families. Jewish people too. A broad coalition is developing
Any surprise that “Bruce” cannot count considering his “choice” of logic !
Sorry Brucey!!
The police says 160 tops !!
What a weak, one-eyed Government and Judiciary service we have. They have all – police included – emasculated by the P.C BRIGADE. My God – I never thought I would see this day come……Australia handicapped by the Human Rights and anti Discriminate lobbies – that are as RACIST as they come.
He’s right, there were at least 500 people, if you count per square metre the poor buggers pissed off on the road for being subjected to this inconveninet circus by a mindless mob.
Yes, a GREAT success and should be repeated at least once a month so the “message” is clear…
Langosch claims on his Facebook page that 500 attended the rally.
I’ve heard from 3 people, who went to watch the proceedings, there were 100 to 120 people there . A news report gives the same figure and a Youtube video confirms it.
The 105 comments in the Telegraph this morning pretty much said it all.
A few examples
I’m sorry, I though Palestinian & Israel were overseas.. If there is an issue, why not take it overseas so that the people involved get the message. I’m taking my wife out tonight and i will not be happy if this interupts my night.
What about a protest on the Syrian situation? Where thousands of muslims have died. No muslim protests against muslims only protests against the Jewish.
I don’t understand… did Australia occupy Palestine? Why don’t they go to Israel and protest there? Is that because they are afraid of being arrested there? I for one couldn’t care less about the “continued military occupation of Palestine”, however I do care about the traffic in my city.
Yes, worth disrupting peak hour in Sydney for a great cause very close to the heart of all red blooded Australians.
Well, go back to Palestine Mr Langosch! Stage your demostration there, and leave us working folks alone here in Sydney.
What a Joke. If they are concerned for members working then it should be on a weekend and not in the CBD. How are motorists or the thousands stuck on Buses supposed to move. For some of us there are NO TRAINS only the minimal sardine bus service provided. GO AND PROTEST ELSEWHRERE !!!!!!
Who approved this ??? Bazza do your Job and move them on. Why 6.00pm in the CBD. Have to work, then protest at Midnight.
WHATS WRONG WITH THE WEEKEND to do this, we are pandering again are we, dont wish to upset anyone do we now. I’m never a happy happy joy joy working class person leaving to fight through peak hour at 1800, JUST SAYING
This Court decision should be appealed as a matter of urgency. Why should the rest of us be asked to accommodate foreign political exhibitionism in the central city at any time, let alone at peak hour?
Why pick on SYDNEY CBD. Go and protest elsewhere. The Birdsville CBD would be much better.
Hello Shirlee
I would invite you to apply the same rules to Zionists, Israel and the campaign on Darfur being funded and promoted by Zionists in Australia. Why are Australian Jews camaigning for Israel ? Israel is not Australia! If they want to promote Israel let them go to Israel. Disabnd the JNF, ZCA, AUJS, AIJAC et al!. Why should they hold Israel Day here ? Let the all go to Israel!
It was on May 15 1948 that Azzam Pasha is said to have declared: “This will be a war of extermination and a momentous massacre which will be spoken of like the Mongolian massacres and the Crusades”. Al-Naqba Day commemorates the failure of the armies of six Arab countries to carry out that massacre. We should all be celebrating.
The rally will be a great success – for Israel. Ordinary Australians will recognise the hysteria of the marchers, some no doubt carrying posters of Che Guevera and be, with reason, angry with the delays and inconveniences. This will make them hate the Palestinian supporters and do the opposite of what the marchers wan’t to achieve. Anyway the march has to finish before 7:00 pm – any later would be past the bedtime of the childish left.
I see such a protest as a rise in anti Jewish sentiments in the Australian community and therefore on a slippery slope towards racism against Jews. This should never happen under any circumstances in this country and as Australians we should be alarmed.
When Israel is mentioned in the news, it is in a negative light, being portrayed as the bully of the middle east. This is far from the truth. Israel has had to defend itself from fanatics for the past 64 years.Is this biased reporting done to appease the Muslim community?This is a dark day in Australian social and political history, particularly when racism is so denounced down under. It is appalling that Israel’s history is so misunderstood.
For what it is worth, Israel, and the Jewish people in the diaspora have contributed allot to their communities and to the world. History proves it.
.
A list of Israeli Nobel Prize winners.
Dan Shechtman, Chemistry, 2011
Ada E. Yonath, Chemistry, 2009
Robert Aumann, born in Germany, Economics, 2005
Aaron Ciechanover, Chemistry, 2004
Avram Hershko, born in Hungary, Chemistry, 2004
Daniel Kahneman, Economics, 2002
Is it possible to organise a public display of Australians for Israel?
I wonder how many Leftist / progressive Jews and groups NIF ? perhaps, will be marching along aside
the Palestinian activists in Sydney?
Just as well the demo ends at 7 p.m. on time for them to take their leadership places at the NSWJBD’s tonite’s plenum.
Mr Waldmann does not seem to be aware of history, the Arabs did not create Transjordan, Churchuill did. And of course, the British betrayed the Arabs with the Sykes Picot agreement and its coninuation in the League of nations mandate and the Balfour declaration. All of them imposed on the Palestiniasn by force of arms with the latter collaboration of the Jewish Agency. In fact the Zionist terror groups had their initial training under Orde Charles Windgate in the Special Night Squads, which terrorised the Palestinian freedom movement.
A truly racists empathy that criminalises the denial of the holocaust but has no qualms about denying the existance of a living nation. Was there an Aboriginal flag, king, president or currency before colonisation / Presto! Aborigines do not exist.
History -illiterate “Ben”. In my nearly ten years of study of history at universities, not at aqba rallies, i observed rule No.1, i.e. ” There are NO identical events in the study of history. Each event is considered on its own values. “. Also, until your arab mates planned on obliterating Israel in the pre 6 Day War, Judea and Samaria were part of a legitimate Jordanian home for what now come to be known as palestinians. They wanted more and got it in spades ! As they, and all their mates, lost badly, eventually, Israel agreed to return 98% of their losses to the invented palestinian entity. If you dont like it, we say in Ivrit ” ein brera “.
If you insist on looking sophisticated , send us a picture of you licking a cone of TNT ice cream while cuddling a stray dog in down town Gaza.
Hello Wladmann – that you for the personal insults. reveals a great about intelleigence, and moral content.
Correting typos.
Thank you for the insults. Betrays a great deal about the intellectual and moral content of Zionism.
Ben the Palestinian Arabs as Palestinians at the time before legal establishment of Israel where the Jews, Christians and Arabs living in colony name Palestine, there never was a country or a state called Palestine, it was colony of Turkish Ottoman for 300 who brought the Arabs to Palestine from all over the place while the Jews was there for over 3000 years, the Arabs had a chance to have a Arab state of Palestine in 1948 but declined, so obviously you not educated enough and nether the organizer of this stupid rally to have anything intelligent to say, as for the rally who cares what’s happening with Arabs in Palestine we have enough problems here with Arab Muslims in Australia, this rally will only hammer the nail to the coffin as they say, stopping traffic for tired people is just the right idea to hate them more, what a idiotic idea this rally is.What Aborigines have to do with it????So the Palestinian Arab terrorist are killing civilians in they sleep cutting troth’s little children and baby’s all in the name of Allah.There is many 1.5 million Palestinian Arabs who live in Israel and they don’t wont to live in Palestine as there they would never have such a good life as living in Israel. as for you GET A LIFE !!
Hello Michelle
You seem to forget that nations ans states are two different things. There are supra-national states (the Ottoman empire) and there are nations withou state – the Kurds. What is moot is the existance of a society of people in the territory – here palestinians who were expelled to create israel.
By the way administrators = no last name here or with Shirlee. Don’t want to accuse the administrators of double standard.
Hello Shirlee what sor of blackmail was the judge subjected to – from the governor general, the Prime Minister, leader of the opposition, Andrew Bolt or Rupert Murdoch ?
Ben get real.
You can read. You are just trying to be a pain in the you-know-where
Read my lips.
This is pretty self explanatory
****Langosch told the court that “it is not an option to have it on any other day than May 15″ adding “the demonstration will go on regardless of the decision of the Court.****
Thanks for the personal insults – reveals a great about intellectual, moral content. A magistrate is intimidated by a defendant saying they will march!
Waldman and Zionists would do well to at least read their own intellectual leaders. Jabotinsky for instance.
Mr Alhadeff is opposed to bringing overses conflicts to Australia, only so long a they are palestinian. Israelis/Zionists are of course welcome to hob nob with the Prime Minister, MPs and ministers at Israeli days, JNF fundraisers et al. And Israeli supporters are welcome to bring their cause to Shuls, conferences and universities.
Zionists and the cops are only clinging at specious excuse to supress the rallly. 7 pm is not peak time and a march ususaly takes about 15 minutes to pass an intersection, unless there are more than 10,000 marchers.
Dominated by viral sanguine hatred “Ben” cannot, at the same time, be also rational. Just as with his naqba, and may he well suffer catastrphically the prosperity of Israel, the issue right here is that the public places of Australia used by people who do NOT wish to be exposed to OTHER issues, by virtue of mob hysteria, cannot be , once again, compared with formal functions in contained spaces, attended by invitation only and which are NOT exposed to a public unwilling to be a “party” to them.
Just as with all other matters, the reason palestinians and their ilk continue to suffer is PRECISELY because, not unlike “Ben”, their … reason is, seemngly, irreversibly badly, real badly putrified.So, marching up and down Syd. CBD in peak hour is, most definitely, not the cure. Luckily Jabotinsky has taught us how to deal with this mob.
Incidentally, there is a plethora of palestinians and pro palestinians trotting in all directions the Government corridors of power bleeding the venom of fictitious victimhood.
Very amusing. Ranting and raving, and smear and insults descending into gibberish.
The objections by NSW Police were political neutral. The Judgement and decision by the Supreme Court were NOT. As such Justice presiding was out of order, turning a strictly administrative objection into a political cause, aggravated by the inadmissible analogies between a date chosen arbitrarily and with decisive political grounding, based also on farcical arguments and dates falsely campared with those established by certain legitimate entities, state or religious, based on decisions made by Parliaments, ANZAC, or synods, for the the religious dates. “Naqba” is not analogue on any basis to any of them. The presiding Justice went far beyond the issues raised by the NSW Police.
In any case, the plestinian cause is not going to be advanced favourably through this demonstration on the Australian soil, something that gives me, at least, great naches ! The obvious Middle Eastern type bloke with two fingers raised in the letter “V” no doubt for “Venal” or “Venerial”, brandishing a Hungarian name with German transliteration who looks as palestinian as I look Tutsie, may reckon that his naqba has had its day in court , for little does he realise that his pals seem set to prolongue their naqba as long as misguded judgements shall guide their fate.
I would like to suggest you read “Israeli Rejectionism — A Hidden Agenda in the Middle East Peace Process” by Zalman Amit and Daphna Levit. It takes two to tango, and to make peace
And like for Aboriginal people on January 26, May 15 is a day for expelled Palestinian Arabs and the descendants to commemorate and mourn the loss of their historic homes and communities
Mr Langosch is a Ignorant man ; any Inteligent person in the world knows that the bigest farse on the 20th century is the creation on the so called Palestinian People,
there han never been a People called Palestinia’s they never had a country a Flag a Capital etc etc
The only country that was given to this people is Jordan ,
but there has allways been a country called Israel with it’s Capital Jerusalem with a history of the Jewish people that is more than 4000 years old and is recorded even in the Koran and every book of history of the Arab world, Babilonian history , Persian History , Assirian , Greek history Etc etc.
Mr Langosch should go back to school and study World History.
Mr Alhadeff is factually wrong. The Arabs DID create their own state at the time the Jewish State was formed. It is called Jordan and, as Mr. Peter Singer has insisted for decades now, Jordan IS Palestine.
As about the “victory” scorred by the supporters of “naqba”, the falsehoods prommoted with such verve will gain the benefits of causing Australians at least wonder as why would anyone try to attract support and sympathy for their cause in such a disruptive, civicly mindless way. But, then, there is a lot of consistency between “substance” and method with these people, i.e. neither makes sense.
Typo: I meant DAVID Singer !!
ow
Seems to me the Judge was blackmailed in to letting this go ahead ,otherwise we may have seen repeat performances of those we have witnessed in the past.
This pretty much says it all , pure blackmail…….
“Langosch told the court that “the demonstration will go on regardless of the decision of the Court.” “
This was a great victory for civil liberties and Palestine solidarity. One can only still wonder why, given that by their own admission the police facilitate hundreds of protests every year, they chose to take this one to the Supreme Court.
I also wanted to point out that the statement by the NSW police about the time of the rally and disruption to traffic is factually incorrect and the police have been made aware of this fact but have yet to issue a correction (in fact, in that time they have re-issued the same factually in correct statement).
The rally will be starting at 6pm at Town Hall and marching at 7pm. Why, given the whole day in court talking about it, did the NSW police tell motorists to avoid driving in the CBD from 5pm-7pm, which would only result in more disruption? Why have they not corrected this glaring factual inaccuracy and instead re-affirmed it? Incompetence? Malicious intent to cause more disruption then there would otherwise be as payback for the victor in the Supreme Court?