NZ Jewish Leaders Want Hate Speech Laws Mirroring Australia’s Proposed Reforms

Australia’s plan, devised by anti-Semitism envoy Jillian Segal, proposes her office ’monitor' media coverage.

Protestors hold placards and flags during a rally against antisemitism at The Domain on February 18, 2024 in Sydney, Australia. In response to a nearly 738% surge in reported antisemitic incidents in Australia, The Never Again Is Now movement is mobilising a huge number of people across Australia, kicking off in Sydney, with an estimated 10,000 people in attendance, organisers said. Photo by Lisa Maree Williams/Getty Images

The new tougher anti-Semitism laws proposed for Australia have inspired two Jewish lobby groups in New Zealand to call for similar action.

The New Zealand Jewish Council and the Holocaust Centre of New Zealand are pushing their government to “urgently develop and implement a comprehensive national strategy to combat anti-Semitism, following the bold and principled leadership demonstrated by the Australian government.”

Australia’s plan, devised by anti-Semitism envoy Jillian Segal, proposes her office “monitor” media coverage and extend laws which already impose harsh penalties for offences such as arson attacks at synagogues and vandalism of Jewish schools or cultural sites.

Segal’s proposal would see hate crimes laws expanded to deal with incitement, vilification, and “the speaking of hatred” without necessarily linking to actual violence.

Among other contentious proposals include withholding funding from universities and artists if they failed to act against anti-Semitism, and the government also gaining new powers to deport visitors deemed to be anti-Semitic.

Critics have warned it could have a chilling effect on news coverage, education, and free speech generally, because of the danger of conflating criticism of Israel, or Zionism, with Judaism.

Australian Jewish Association Urges Caution

Even the conservative-leaning Australian Jewish Association, which was not involved with drafting the report, urged caution.

“[The report] does adopt several policies which AJA has been advocating for years, such as stripping money from universities which encourage anti-Semitism and adopting stricter immigration policies to stop importing anti-Semites from overseas.

“Other policies, such as suggested curbs on freedom of speech with stricter ‘hate speech’ laws, would likely not be in line with AJA policies, and we would doubt their effectiveness,” the group said in a post on X.

But that hasn’t deterred the two New Zealand groups from embracing all of Segal’s ideas, praising the seeming willingness of Australian politicians to adopt them.

“In contrast [to Australia], New Zealand has remained largely silent in the face of a marked and disturbing rise in anti-Semitic incidents, particularly in our universities,” the Council and Centre said.

“Over recent months, Jewish students and academics in [New Zealand] have reported a growing climate of hostility and fear, from intimidation and exclusion to open displays of anti-Semitic rhetoric. We have reached a point where many no longer feel safe expressing their identity on campus.

“Much of this rhetoric is disguised as concern for the human rights of Palestinians or concern about Israel’s conduct of the war in Gaza, both positions which the Jewish Council and Holocaust Centre have repeatedly said do not constitute antisemitism.

The groups said “explicitly or tacitly endorsing violence or discrimination against Jews” was also a form of anti-Semitism, and said there should be a zero tolerance approach adopted.

Free Speech Union Warns of Censorship

But the Free Speech Union of Australia has warned against following the Segal blueprint in New Zealand, noting hate speech laws could “promote censorship” and would “likely fuel further anti-Semitism,” said spokesperson Reuben Kirkham.

“It appears that Ms. Segal has overlooked the history of hate speech laws and their literally Stalinist origins. We also note that these proposals are opposed by a significant number of members of the Jewish community in Australia, precisely for those reasons.”

And the New Zealand Free Speech Union goes further, warning in an X post that it risks being “a terrible own goal for the Jewish community,” according to Union council member Dane Giraud.

“Objectively, the last 18 months have witnessed an intense rise in anti-Semitic actions around the world, not least of all in Australia and New Zealand. Some of these actions have been unlawful and unacceptable. However, conflating such actions with the speech and opinions of individuals (such as students on university campuses) will not make a single Jew (or any Kiwi) safer,” he said.

“Stricter enforcement of ‘hate speech’ laws and removing funding from universities for failing to act against certain perspectives is overreach and risks setting a terrifying precedent. It will affirm many conspiracies in certain people’s minds that will inevitably result in greater antagonism against our (Jewish) community.

“As we’ve seen abroad, anyone who defies such bans can become a martyr or even cult hero. Censorship is a gift that can elevate the once obscure. Free speech is still our best tool with which to combat bigotry.”