Student organisers of an anti-Israel protest camp at the Australian National University have declared that Hamas “deserve our unconditional support” while saying they “do not condemn” the October 7 terror attacks.
Around 40 students camped out on the ANU’s Kambri Lawn on Monday night as part of a protest led by the ANU Students’ Association (ANUSA).
Organisers of encampment, which mirrors similar scenes at other western universities, are calling on the ANU to divest from weapons manufacturers as well as cut ties with the Hebrew University of Jerusalem and all similar Israeli institutions.
Two of the organisers, Beatrice Tucker and Luke Harrison, spoke to ABC Radio Canberra on Tuesday when Drive host Ross Solly repeatedly pressed them to condemn Hamas, which is formally listed as a terrorist organisation by the Australian government.
“You’ve obviously got a very strong message you want to send to Israel — what message would you send to Hamas?” Solly asked.
“To Hamas?” Ms Tucker said.
“This is a very common question the media often throws at pro-Palestine activists regarding Hamas, which I would like to address because it’s seen as a bit of a scapegoat … if you kind of have to condemn Hamas or talk about Hamas, it’s a distraction from the issue at hand which is actually there’s a genocide going on.”
Solly pointed out that “Israel wouldn’t say it’s a distraction”.
“They would say they’re undertaking this action because Hamas kidnapped and still holds Israelis hostage,” he said, adding that “I’m not for one moment defending Israel’s actions, I mean let’s face it, how many children do you want to kill before everything stops”.
“But surely if you’re going to protest against that, you’ve also got to send a message to Hamas to release the hostages, don’t you?” he continued.
Ms Tucker replied, “Well I actually say that Hamas deserve our unconditional support — absolutely. Not because I agree with their strategy. Complete disagreements with that. But the situation at hand is if you have no hope, if you are sanctioned every day of your life, if you are told you are not allowed to drive down a road because somebody who is Israeli gets to have preference and you sit there for 12 hours, the reality of life in Palestine…”
Solly interjected, “But that can’t justify what they did in October last year.”
Ms Tucker hit back that “nothing can justify what has been happening to the Palestinian people for 75 years”.
“But you can’t condemn what Hamas did in October last year?” Solly asked.
“I will not condemn what Hamas did,” Ms Tucker said. “We must be unconditional but we must be critical also.”
Asked for his view, Mr Harrison said, “No, I do not condemn.”
Solly continued, “So they came in, so many people got killed, innocent people got killed, babies got killed, people are still being held hostage…”
Ms Tucker replied that “the thing about babies being killed, the numbers are quite false”.
“There’s been a lot of misinformation spread around about who killed who, and actually there’s a lot of evidence to say that Israel and the IDF themselves actually did murder a lot of their own people,” she said.
Solly said he wasn’t sure there was “any proof to that”.
Ms Tucker then stressed that it was “important to hold the political context” in mind.
“The death of anybody is not good, and there’s no way that I’m pro-violence, but I will not condemn people who have been subjected to no hope and no ability to leave what is the biggest concentration camp in the world,” she said.
The ACT Young Liberals had earlier condemned the protest as “anti-Semitic and disgusting”.
“ANUSA should be supporting its students, regardless of background, but instead has chosen to propagate division and hate on campus — jeopardising the safety of Jewish students on campus,” the group wrote on Facebook.
Earlier in the interview, Solly asked whether the organisers had any concerns about “how you might be making Jewish students feel on campus”.
Mr Harrison replied that he was a Jewish student and “the organisation of this encampment has been so focused on making it a safe space for everyone, including Jewish students”.
“Jewish students are welcome and we have been fighting for the recognition that anti-Zionism and critique of Israel is not anti-Semitic,” he said.
“It’s critique of a state that’s committing genocide and apartheid. We’re committed to safety for all and speaking from personal experience … I felt so in touch with community through this encampment. Together we’ve been fighting for a just cause, but there is no traces of anti-Semitism.”
In a statement on Wednesday, Mr Harrison said “in the moment” he “did not give sufficient thought to the question the journalist had raised”.
“On further reflection I withdraw my statement and wish to say the following,” he said.
“I think it’s important I clarify my comments of yesterday. The issues are complex and difficult and I want to make clear that I condemn what happened on October 7 and endorse the SRC statement from March 2024.”
The SRC statement read, “ANUSA condemns the bombing, killing, and kidnapping of innocent Israeli civilians by Hamas. These actions are totally reprehensible and illegal under international and national laws, and Hamas must be held accountable. ANUSA recognises that Hamas does not represent the legitimate aspirations of the Palestinian people.”
ANUSA presidemt Phoenix O’Neill said, “ANUSA condemns statements regarding Hamas made by students on ABC Drive on April 30, 2024. These comments do not represent ANUSA’s views nor the views of the great bulk of our members.”
An ANU spokeswoman said in a statement on Wednesday that “ensuring the safety and wellbeing of our students and staff is our top priority, and we want to assure our community that measures are in place to maintain safety on our campus”.
“The Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Academic) and ANU Security are in direct communication with a spokesperson for the protesters, in particular about safety for our community, and will continue discussions in the coming days,” she said.
“Our university policies guarantee freedom of speech, allowing all students and staff to express their views in accordance with Australian law. However, we do not condone any speech that is discriminatory or violates Australian law or our code of conduct.
“Necessary disciplinary action may be taken if our codes are breached. If any students are feeling distressed, our Student Safety and Wellbeing team are available to provide support.”
Alex Ryvchin, co-chief executive of the Executive Council of Australian Jewry, called for the students to be expelled.
“This is a chilling insight into the minds of supposedly pro-Palestine activists and the failures of leadership and education that have enabled this,” Mr Ryvchin said.
“Aside from being pack rapists, child-murderers and cowards who deliberately kill civilians before hiding behind the people they claim they’re protecting, Hamas is a proscribed terrorist organisation in this country. Anyone expressing support for a listed terrorist organisation should not only face immediate expulsion from the university, they should face the law.”
The war in Gaza started after Hamas’s October 7 attack on southern Israel resulted in the deaths of 1170 people, mostly civilians, according to Israeli official figures tallied by news agency AFP.
Israel’s retaliatory offensive has killed at least 34,535 people in Gaza, mostly women and children, according to the health ministry in the Hamas-run territory.
Palestinian militants also took some 250 hostages on October 7. Israel estimates 129 remain in Gaza, including 34 believed to be dead.
frank.chung@news.com.au