ECAJ Annual Conference see presidency move to Melbourne

The annual conference of The Executive Council of Australian Jewry held at Sydney’s Moriah College saw its leadership move to Melbourne from Sydney.

Concluding her four-year term as president, Jill Segal praised co-CEO Peter Wertheim for his work in preparing the annual report.

She said: “It details a huge body of work-from responding to Government requests on new legislation to advocacy on many fronts, from appearances before Parliamentary committees to discussing IHRA adoption with Vice-Chancellors and so on. These wide-ranging activities of a representative body are necessary , for example, where would we be today if we had not successfully advocated over many years for the listing of Hamas and Hezbollah as terrorist organisations?”

Her mood shifted to the current situation. She said: “As we meet today, despite the beginning of a program of hostage release, hundreds of Israelis are still enduring the horror of captivity by a band of sadistic killers. Many of them are the last surviving members of their families. Communities that for decades thrived, reared livestock, farmed, and studied are now permanently disfigured; their names, Kfar Aza, Be’eri, Re’im, will forever be cloaked in that tragic aura like so many shtetls in Poland and Lithuania. This resonates with the Jewish people all over the world. These were sites of mass murder, trauma, and hatred visited on people just because they were Jewish. Many of those attacked, killed or taken hostage were peace-loving. Many of them thought they had warm relations with their close neighbours and workers in Gaza and that they could live together as peaceful neighbours. But no, that was not to be.

And our local war is just beginning. We must understand that we, as the representatives of this community, have obligations. We are here to fight for the rights and freedoms of our people. To defend Israel from disinformation and slander that ultimately is paid for in Jewish lives. We are here to maintain public and political support for Israel. We are here to ensure that Jews in this country will never have to cower, will never have to flee, will never have to hide who we are and can live full and free Jewish lives as part of a peaceful and accepting multicultural society.”

Jill talked about the ECAJ’s presence in the media and social media. The face of co-CEO Alex Ryvchin is seen regularly on television and frequently quoted in print media.

The ECAJ has been effective in liaising with federal politicians in Canberra as well as working on security matters and education.

A live link to the USA introduced William Daroff, the CEO of the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations, which Peter Wertheim described as being somewhat akin to The Executive Council of Australian Jewry.

He spoke of Jewish leadership following October 7.

Former president of ECAJ Nina Bassat made a moving tribute to Jeremy Jones.

She described Jones as ‘an extraordinary and caring man [who] was for me defined by five things: his Judaism, his intellect, his humanity, menschlichkeit and his love of his family. Jeremy was an Australian Jew who wore his joint identity with pride. His Judaism was non-negotiable, and he lived as a Jew in a way to which many of us aspire, with a totality.’ Bassat spoke of the impact Jones had on the lives of Australian Jews and on interfaith dialogue internationally before she began to tear up. ‘I thought I could get through this without crying. I don’t cry readily, but if there was a time when we needed Jeremy with us to proclaim “Am Yisrael Chai” it is today.’

Mark Butler, the federal Minister for Health and Aged Care, spoke at the annual conference on behalf of the prime minister whom he called one of his ‘oldest friends in parliament.’

Speaking about the terror attack on October 7, Butler connected to how the community has been feeling, saying: ‘I know those events still resonate with your every waking moment, probably some of your sleeping moments as well. I’ve had occasion to talk to one of your members who has had family released over the last 24 hours, and the bittersweet sense of relief, but still, horror gets out. And so, I’ve come to you, and I talk to you with a very deep sense of the pain and the distress that your community is going through.’

Butler spoke on Australian history and how Jews who came here as refugees in the lead-up to World War II, referring to the often ignored ‘powerful moment of that era, the Australian contribution to the Evian Conference in 1938.

As a Yachad scholar twenty years ago, Butler visited Yad Vashem and read the quote by Thomas White, the Australian representative to the conference ‘As we have no real racial problem, we are not desirous of importing one.’ The display affected him. ‘I saw it and I burned it in my mind’s eye, the responsibility that we all share, not just the Germans but we all shared for what happened in our own small path.’

Julie Nathan, the ECAJ’s research director, presented the key findings of the 2023 Antisemitism Report, for which she is responsible.

With the leadership from Sydney’s Jillian Segal to Melbourne’s Daniel Aghion, who has served in executive roles in the ECAJ and JCCV,  Jillian’s numerous colleagues described the skill and fortitude with which Jillian led the ECAJ in her tenure, a time as she put it went ‘from Covid to catastrophe’. A testament to the nature in which Segal has driven the community and brought its concerns to the government. Mark Butler described in his speech Segal’s work as ‘The Government, the Prime Minister, has always appreciated your firm, always frank, but wise counsel.’

Incoming President Daniel Aghion spoke of his goals for his presidency. “Several months ago, I drafted some aspirational goals for my future presidency of the ECAJ. I road-tested them with colleagues, most of whom are here today. On reflection, they remain valid, even more so given Israel’s war with Hamas. I have three somewhat modest goals for the presidency.’ Aghion explains in his speech his three-pronged approach to his upcoming presidency. Continuity was his foremost point, building on the strong efforts of his predecessor. ‘This is not the time for radical change, it is a time to consolidate the successes.’ He also stated the need to reengage with smaller Jewish communities outside of Sydney and Melbourne, which was made difficult during the pandemic. He set out during breaks to discuss issues with Jewish leaders from across Australia and raised the idea of visiting those communities to really see their communities and their needs. ‘We need to communicate more about our work within the Jewish community. We need to explain our work better to our own community.’ Attending the conference were Geoff Midalia (WA), Annetay Henderson-Sapir (SA), Athol Morris (ACT), Jeff Schneider (TAS) and Jason Steinberg (QLD).

Outgoing and incoming presidents of AUJS, Alissa Foster and Noah Loven, respectively, also presented to the community leaders. Both Foster and Loven spoke of Jewish students’ needs in recent weeks and the expected rise in antisemitism when universities return to class next year. As for his goals as AUJS president, Loven’s approach reflects that of the ECA, that now is the time to keep going with the work done by previous leadership and ensure the well-being of the Jewish community. ‘We’ve been very concerned with the well-being of Jewish students, we’ve implemented numerous policies, working with universities, I want to make sure that Jewish students are safe, but also provided the mental health resources, the special considerations, provisions, and the sense of community to make sure that Jewish students can get through these times. We’ve had very constructive meetings with the government, with community stakeholders to make sure that all the provisions are in place to make sure that Jewish students are safe.’ While responding to rising antisemitism after October 7 and maintaining student wellbeing takes priority, Loven aims to continue making students feel proud of being Jewish and encouraging future leadership within the organisation.

Following the conference, Senator Simon Birmingham, Shadow Foreign Minister and Allegra Spender MP joined community leaders for cocktail drinks.