The Australian federal government will introduce a bill next week to ban the public display of Nazi symbols across Australia.
The Australian federal government will introduce a bill next week to ban the public display of Nazi symbols across Australia, reports The Jerusalem Post.
The announcement comes amid the country’s ongoing battle against antisemitism and only a few days after two young neo-Nazis were performing a Nazi salute during a protest in Melbourne’s central business district in early June.
In March, the Australian federal government had begun working on a move to ban the Nazi salute within months, following an incident in Melbourne, when the state of Victoria condemned Nazi salutes at a protest in the state capital as an attempt „to scapegoat minorities” using „evil ideology.” Victoria was the first Australian state to pass a bill that bans the public display of a swastika in July 2022, and it passed laws criminalising the public display of all Nazi symbols in December.
The Australia/Israel & Jewish Affairs Council (AIJAC) welcomed and applauded the announcement. Executive Director Dr Colin Rubenstein said, „We believe this legislation will send a clear message to the Australian community that we as a nation will not tolerate those who seek to divide us by promoting an ideology characterised by racism, industrialised genocide and mass murder.”
Photo credit: AAP, James Ross
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