PUBLIC STATEMENT

AAM and ANIC are Deeply Disappointed with Australia’s recent Abstention at the UN General Assembly

The Alliance of Australian Muslims (AAM) and Australian National Imams Council (ANIC) are deeply disappointed and disheartened at Australia’s recent abstention at the UN General Assembly that sought to impose sanctions on Israel for its ongoing apartheid regime and illegal occupation in Palestine.

On the 18^th of September, the State of Palestine, who just last week was welcomed in the General Assembly for the first time, put forward a resolution demanding Israel end its occupation in Gaza and the West Bank. This move comes following the International Court of Justice’s (ICJ) recent ruling identifying Israel’s presence in the West Bank as illegal, as well as the International Criminal Court (ICC) calling for arrest warrants on PM Netanyahu and his Defence Minister Yoav Gallant.

The resolution received an overwhelming majority vote (124 in favour, 43 abstentions, and 14 against), with many of Australia’s neighbours and allies in favour of the motion (New Zealand, France, and Spain). Such an abstention further erodes the fabric of social cohesion, and unfortunately implies to the people of Australia and the world that the Australian government is not ready to stand firmly for justice in the face of systemic oppression.

Australia should have followed through with its moral and legal obligation to recognise the rulings passed down by the ICJ and ICC and vote in favour of the resolution. By abstaining, it fails to hold Israel accountable for its illegal actions and in turn, normalises the genocide and apartheid regime it has been imposing on the innocent Palestinian people for over 75 years.

We call on the Australian government to reassess its stance on the matter and to take more direct and effective steps in line with international law to achieve freedom and peace for the people of Palestine. We also call on the public to voice their concerns to their local federal members to question why Australia failed to vote in favour of imposing sanctions on Israel for its ongoing apartheid regime and illegal occupation in Palestine.

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