Television Interview, Sky

SUBJECTS: Bondi terrorist attack, social cohesion, immigration 

HOLLY STEARNES [HOST]: Well, joining me live now in the studio is Assistant Defence Minister and former Special Envoy for Social Cohesion, Peter Khalil. Thank you for your time.

PETER KHALIL [ASSISTANT MINISTER]: Thanks, Holly.

STEARNES: How are you feeling? What's your reaction?

KHALIL: Oh, it's one of the darkest days in Australia's history, and I think, you know, this is the deadliest terror attack on Australian soil and the largest massacre since Port Arthur. But it's an attack on Jewish Australians, our fellow citizens, our fellow Australians, and as the Prime Minister rightly said, an attack on Jewish Australians is an attack on all of us. I've spoken to a lot of Jewish community members today, Jewish leadership last night and this morning. There is a deep pain and a deep sense of grief and fear. So I think it's so important now that Australians, all of us, put our arms around our fellow Jewish Australians, our friends and our neighbours and our family. I think that it is critically important, because fundamentally, the type of country that we want to live in, is one in which anyone, regardless of their faith, their background, should be free and at peace to worship, to celebrate their faith, to be free from this kind of violence and hatred that we've seen, Holly, it is evil. I mean, I heard the Prime Minister yesterday saying, and Chris Minns, the Premier, they were talking about an act of evil. It is an evil that's lodged in these men and others who have this view, or whatever their worldview is, whatever their political ideology, or their religious view. It’s allowed them to dehumanise a part of our community, Jewish Australians, and then act out obscene violence towards them. That hatred and that evil is something that we have to stamp out, we have to fight against, and that is what our challenge is right now as a nation.

STEARNES: My concern and my anger is with the Prime Minister when he comes out and says, we will stamp out antisemitism. This is not new, Peter. This has been going on for a long time. I have covered protests where I've been verbally abused, where I've seen terrorist flags being carried down our city streets, where our synagogues have been attacked, where our Jewish leaders have said to me that they are fearful for their lives, for their children's lives. This is not new. And that is what makes me feel so angry that the Prime Minister can come out now and say, we will stamp out antisemitism. Yes, the Prime Minister is a human. Of course, he doesn't like what has happened here, but ultimately, the buck stops with him. He is the leader of this country, and he has shown nothing but weakness when it comes to antisemitism.

KHALIL: Well, I disagree with that viewpoint, Holly. Respectfully, the Prime Minister cares deeply about all Australians. Including Jewish Australians.

STEARNES: What has he done?

KHALIL: To answer your question, antisemitism is not new. It is a scourge that has gone on for thousands of years…

STEARNES: It has risen in the last two years…

KHALIL: …it has exacerbated, if you let me answer, it has exacerbated and become worse in Australia over the last couple of years. You talk about attacks. I understand that. I empathise with the Jewish community. We have been attacked. I have been attacked, my staff have been attacked for taking positions over the last few years and that I've taken in politics. These people, this hatred and this evil is something that we all have to fight against. So, every small act of discrimination, every small act, no matter how small it is, of antisemitism is absolutely not to be tolerated. Now, that can happen through the law, and it should, through our hate laws and our hate speech. We've banned Nazi symbols. We've increased and strengthened federal laws around hate speech. To answer your question of what we've done, we've provided security and support for Jewish schools and synagogues. I was very much advocating for a lot of this over the last couple of years. Given the rise in the attacks against the community and the fear that is palpable. The Prime Minister has been front and centre in providing that support and those resources in millions of dollars. But it's not just about money. It's about the way we actually push back against this. Because fundamentally, we're talking about our democracy Holly, so we can all live in a harmonious, peaceable, multi ethnic, multicultural, multi-faith society. And whatever differences that we have, whatever disagreements, we can navigate that without resorting to violence, that we are peaceful in that disagreement. There are those who believe that they can use violence, whether it's killing people or acts of violence or physical intimidation, and that is what we're fighting against.

STEARNES: Can I just say, the moment the Albanese Government stood up and recognised Palestinian statehood is the moment. Now, it has legitimised terror in Australia, and that is what the fact is here. I just spoke to a Jewish leader. She said the Albanese Government has not done enough. This is not me disagreeing with you. This is the Jewish community who is living through this. They say the Albanese Government hasn't done enough, enacted all of the recommendations by its own special envoy. That's the anger coming from the community, and the Albanese Government needs to show leadership and take accountability for this.

KHALIL: Well, there is definitely anger amongst the community and rightfully so because of the fear, the palpable fear, the risk to their communities. I talk to friends of mine who say, you know, we live in fear on this and we've been experiencing this, and I completely empathise with that. The government, for its part, has actually taken a number of actions over the last couple of years as antisemitism has risen, including supporting the Jewish communities in every way possible. The Prime Minister is committing to more of that support. But fundamentally, too, this is about our community and the shape our nation takes going forward. My fear is that there are people in the community who think violence or the use of violence is somehow a legitimate political act. It is not. That is anti-democratic, that is isn’t the kind of society that we want. That is what we're up against now. The government can take actions, Holly, but everyone in the community is also responsible. Every time they see a form of discrimination, or they hear it or see it, calling it out is absolutely important. The people who go around justifying acts of violence against Jewish Australians or any Australians, regardless of their faith, that is unacceptable and should not be tolerated because there is no justification for these acts. There is no justification at all. And so, you know, I've worked in national security for twenty five plus years. I have been there where there have been terrorist attacks when I was in Baghdad, I saw 12 civilians killed in a car bomb. I saw the bloodshed. I know the horror that communities can face. The families, the survivors and others. What we are fighting is something that is deeply evil, and it is based in that hatred that I was talking about. It's against everything that we stand for. Now I understand the community can be angry, and they should be, and I understand that the government is doing everything it can to try and address it. The law enforcement and security agencies obviously have been monitoring this and making sure to try and protect the Jewish Australian community from these attacks. And there's been many attacks that we've seen against synagogues, schools, kindergartens and so on. Many that have been foiled as well. That work goes on. That's important work.

STEARNES: Will the government and we have run out of time, I keep getting the notice in my ear that we've run out of time, and I really do appreciate you joining us today as well. It's a really heavy day, and I appreciate that. And there are some tough questions here, too. Will your government consider looking at its immigration policy, bringing people into the country with these kind of ideologies? This person was able to live in Bonnyrigg, of all places, suburban Sydney, with six firearms.

KHALIL: You ask a question about immigration, and you're trying to bring that into this issue now. So, on immigration, my view has always been that the security checks, the health checks, all of the things that we need to do for people that come to this country to want to call Australia home are absolutely critically important. And anyone who goes through trying to get a visa should go through these very thorough checks, which they continue to do. Now, I am not of a view that we should be prejudicing anyone from any particular country, but we want people to come to this country who want to become Australian citizens, who want to contribute to this country. And lastly, Ahmed Al Ahmed, who was the guy who tackled the gunman to the ground, he’s a Muslim Australian, and that's a really important point. He's an Aussie hero who saved countless Jewish lives by preventing that gunman from continuing to fire. That act of bravery, I think, is indicative of what we are as Australians, what we're about. And he put his own life on the line to save people's lives. And that should be acknowledged.

STEARNES: Of course, and we're still hearing some mixed reports about exactly his background, but that is irrelevant because he is the hero in all of this. He truly is. I appreciate your time.

KHALIL: Thanks Holly.

ENDS