Rina Warship Banner (728 x 90 px)The Australian Union movement is a movement of peace and respect for all races and nationalities. We oppose war, racism, and oppression. We act in solidarity.

The Australian Union movement is horrified by the escalating violence and death toll of civilians in Gaza. The ACTU reiterates its statements and resolution of 19 October 2023 and 23 February 2024 and continues to call for an urgent and permanent ceasefire and the release of hostages and political prisoners.

The Australian Union movement is a movement of many cultures, communities, nationalities and faiths, we call on all community, civil society organisations and faith groups in Australia to build unity, oppose racism and promote cultural harmony and tolerance throughout their membership.

We condemn the deaths of over 34,000 civilians since 7 October including (1200 Israelis and over 33,000 Palestinians). We condemn the killing of Zomi Frankcom and other aid workers, including those working for Union Aid Abroad-APHEDA partner MA’AN development centre who have been working on emergency relief in Gaza.

The situation facing people in Gaza is dire: two million people are facing food insecurity. Food shortages have exceeded famine levels and mass death is imminent. The ACTU condemns the use of starvation as a weapon of war and urges Israel to comply with the International Court of Justice’s Order to take immediate steps to prevent acts of genocide, punish incitement to genocide, and facilitate the provision of basic services and humanitarian assistance to Palestinians in Gaza. Israel must immediately provide food and essentials to people in Gaza and ensure unimpeded access for humanitarian aid.

The ACTU welcomes the Australian Government reinstating funding to UNRWA, appointing a special advisor to assess the IDF investigation of the killing of Zomi Frankcom, and calling for a two state solution.​

The ACTU is deeply concerned, however, at evidence that Australia companies supply parts used as part of global supply chains, including to F-35 fighter jets. Israel utilises F-35 fighter jets to drop bombs on Gaza. Under international law, Australia has obligations to deny exports that could or would be used to violate humanitarian law and must employ all means to prevent genocide by another state. The Australian Government must take active steps to ensure it is not contributing to breaches of international law.​

The ACTU calls on the Australian Government to take immediate steps to secure peace by:​

  • Using all influence, pressure, and diplomatic measures to achieve a permanent ceasefire.
  • Ending all military trade with Israel • Enacting targeted sanctions on Israeli officials who have called for the denial of aid, and military and civil servants denying essential food and materials to civilians of Gaza.
  • Committing additional funding of $100 million in humanitarian assistance to Gaza and the West Bank.

This latest escalation is part of a decades-long conflict that must be brought to a just outcome through dialogue and respect for international law, including human rights.

The ACTU calls on the Israeli Government and the Palestinian leadership to promote open, tolerant and respectful societies through adherence to democratic principles in governance, respect for human rights and equal treatment for all.​

The ACTU calls for an end to the occupation of Palestine and a just and sustainable peace in accordance with UN Security Council resolutions. Including the removal of illegal settlements, the withdrawal of Israel from all Palestinian lands along with the dismantling of the separation wall.

In line with the ACTU’s commitment to a two-state solution with the security of borders for both nations, we call on all countries to recognise, without delay, Palestine as a sovereign state with East Jerusalem as its capital. This will confirm the right of the Palestinian people to self-determination in a free and independent Palestine.

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4 COMMENTS

  1. So to boil that whole press release down to one sentence, “The Australian Union is an Anti-Semitic organisation that supports terrorism”
    I really wish Unions would go back to what they should exist for which is supporting local workers rights rather than getting involved in these type of politics. Too many modern day unions are lead by Marxists who actually care very little about their members and are more concerned with furthering the International Cultural Marxist Movement that are destroying our western democracies from the inside.

    • I take a slightly different perspective because I have been subjected to the same thing – namely that even the mildest criticism of Israel leads to screams of anti-Semitism. As awful as the Hamas attack of October 7 was, the destruction of Gaza has gone on for way too long and there have been far too many civilian deaths, particularly of children and babies. Israel is destroying its standing in the world and is losing whatever moral authority it once had. Saying that is not anti-Semitism, it is trying to save Israel – or I should say the Netanyahu government – from itself.

  2. Thanks for posting this statement by the ACTU. I am in complete agreement with you that it is not anti-Semitic to criticise Israel’s actions. Growing numbers of Jews are attending pro-Palestinian rallies, and anti-Zionist Jews have recently established the Jewish Council of Australia. I recommend Tim Edwards reads their statements.

    Australian military history has a strong attachment to Palestine. After Gallipoli, the 1st AIF returned to Egypt. The infantry was then sent to the Western Front while the mounted divisions were sent to the Sinai Peninsula and Palestine to continue fighting the Turks. Ironically, the fiercest fighting was in Gaza which was eventually taken after a nine-month campaign.

    My only concern with the ACTU statement is its support for a two-state solution to the Israel-Palestine conflict. Both the Israelis and Hamas seek control “from the river to the sea”.
    The 1977 original platform of Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu’s Likud Party began with the heading The Right of the Jewish People to the Land of Israel (Eretz Israel) and continued with the two following points:

    a. The right of the Jewish people to the land of Israel is eternal and indisputable and is linked with the right to security and peace; therefore, Judea and Samaria will not be handed to any foreign administration; between the Sea and the Jordan there will only be Israeli sovereignty.

    b. A plan which relinquishes parts of western Eretz Israel, undermines our right to the country, unavoidably leads to the establishment of a “Palestinian State,” jeopardizes the security of the Jewish population, endangers the existence of the State of Israel. and frustrates any prospect of peace…

    The term “Eretz Israel” originated in the Torah and was adopted by Zionists to refer to the Mandated Territory of Palestine, that is, to the entire area from the River Jordan to the Mediterranean Sea. Judea and Samaria specifically refer to the area designated today as the occupied West Bank.

    In opposition to the Zionist claim to an exclusively Jewish/Israeli sovereignty over the area from the Sea to the River (Jordan), the Palestinians have promoted the slogan “From the River to the Sea” as a single secular state where Jews, Christians and Muslims will share equal rights of citizenship.

    Neither side appears willing to compromise, so I fear that a two-state solution is something of a pipe dream.

    • Thanks for that additional detail – that’s very helpful. I agree that for the moment a two state solution appears to be an extremely distant goal. Many on each side see the other as an existential threat to their own survival.

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