ECAJ calls for compromise on hate speech laws

Australia’s peak Jewish body has warned against a wholesale rejection of the federal government’s proposed hate speech legislation, as both the Coalition and the Greens signal they will not support the bill in its current form.

The Executive Council of Australian Jewry (ECAJ) says the draft laws have clear shortcomings but argues they also contain important reforms that should not be abandoned, particularly after the antisemitic terrorist attack at Bondi in December.

ECAJ co-chief executive Peter Wertheim said on Thursday that some Opposition concerns mirrored those already raised by the Jewish community.

“Some of the Opposition’s criticisms of the bill are valid and repeat concerns which we ourselves have expressed about the bill’s shortcomings. However, there are also some important positives in the bill, including the introduction of a new listing regime to proscribe extremist hate organisations,” he said.

Wertheim urged political opponents to focus on improving the legislation rather than blocking it outright.

“The ECAJ would urge the Coalition not to allow the perfect to become the enemy of the good. By all means seek to amend the bill to remove its shortcomings, but a wholesale rejection of the bill would not at all be warranted. In our view, the defeat of the bill would be a retrograde step.”

The proposed legislation was introduced following a sharp rise in antisemitic incidents and would expand hate speech offences while creating new powers to ban extremist organisations that promote racial or religious hatred.

Opposition Leader Sussan Ley and other senior Coalition figures have criticised the bill as rushed and poorly drafted, arguing it is too broad and could have unintended consequences for free speech. Several Coalition MPs have said they cannot support the legislation unless it is substantially amended, citing concerns about legal clarity and enforcement.

The party’s deputy leader, Mehreen Faruqi confirmed the party would not support the government’s proposed hate speech laws, arguing they undermined political, civil and human rights, and warning the bill was overly broad and complex and required proper scrutiny. She said society must reject hatred and racism in all forms, adding, “Our society should be one that rejects hatred and racism in all its forms. Whether it is a queer person who is attacked for who they love, if it’s a Muslim woman in a hijab, or a Jewish man in his kippah, or a trans person for their gender identity.”

Wertheim said reform in this area had always been gradual rather than absolute.

“The entire history of legislative reform concerning this issue has been one of incremental steps towards achieving the effective proscription of speech that deliberately promotes hatred of people based on their race, nationality or ethnic origin. The current bill would represent a significant further step towards that destination even if it does not completely get us there,” he said.

He said the events at Bondi made delay unacceptable.

“The status quo is no longer tolerable after the antisemitic terrorist attack in Bondi. We need legislative reform now even if it is less than ideal.”

With both the Coalition and the Greens withholding support, the government faces a difficult parliamentary path, with negotiations over amendments expected to intensify when the legislation returns for debate.