Glen Eira Council to vote an IHRA definition
On Tuesday, Melbourne’s Glen Eira Council is to vote on adopting the IHRA definition of antisemitism.
Glen Eira council
The outcome is not clear with some voicing their dissent including one of the three Jewish councillors in the municipality which is home to the largest Jewish community in Australia.
The executive director of Zionism Victoria Zeddy Lawrence has announced ZV has launched a petition calling on councillors to vote for the adoption and noting the folly of rejecting it.
In a mailout, Lawrence wrote: “Time is of the essence given the vote is in just three days’ time, and today is Sunday and Monday is Anzac Day.
The report by council officers into the impact of adoption was published and, as feared, they have come out against it.
The outcome is perhaps not surprising given that those they consulted included NIF, the AJDS and the Bard Centre for the Study of Hate, whose antisemitism expert appears to have been a former director of NIF. Meanwhile, David Zyngier, a Greens member of council has spoken out against adoption of the IHRA definition in the past.”
The conclusion of the report reads as follows:
“Council is not required to adopt a single definition of antisemitism in order to continue to undertake its numerous commitments, actions and activities to reject racism in all its forms, celebrate diversity and promote social cohesion. Reaffirming the Together We Stand statement, implementation of action-orientated approaches that support community-led response to antisemitism and a commitment to celebrating diversity that recognises the lived experiences and the contributions of all members of our diverse community is recommended as being Council’s most inclusive response to antisemitism and racism in all its forms.”
Lawrence added: “Needless to say it would be a tremendous blow to the community and communal organisations if the motion to adopt the IHRA definition was rejected. It would also be a disastrous look for Glen Eira Council itself, given it is home to the largest Jewish community in the country. It would also bolster the anti-IHRA campaign moving forwards, as well as the NIF, AJDS and other like-minded groups.”
The petition can be found at https://www.change.org/gleneira-ihra
Councillor Sam Parasol told J-Wire: “Please lend to your support to this petition. We need all the help we can get.
The report can be found here, starting on page 340: https://www.gleneira.vic.gov.au/media/files/Agenda260422.PDF
