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Families of those slain by Islamic State-inspired gunmen in the Bondi Beach attack have written to seek meetings with federal Labor backbenchers, intensifying pressure on Prime Minister Anthony Albanese to call a Commonwealth royal commission into antisemitism and the failures that preceded Australia’s deadliest terrorist attack in decades.
In a letter sent to MPs and seen by this masthead, the families say they will travel to Canberra in the first full sitting week of this year to press for an inquiry with the scope and powers to examine “all contributing factors” behind the December 14 attack on the Hanukkah festival, which killed 15 and injured more than 40.
Sheina Gutnick, daughter of Bondi victim Reuven Morrison. Credit: Sitthixay Ditthavong
“Nothing can adequately convey the devastation that my family, and the families of the other victims, continue to live with every day,” wrote Sheina Gutnick, the daughter of Reuven Morrison, who was killed at Bondi. “Our lives were irrevocably changed by an act of violence that has left deep scars not only on us personally, but on the broader Australian community.”
The prime minister on Tuesday opened the door to a federal royal commission into the attack, ending weeks of fierce resistance to calls by pledging to do “everything that is possible” for national unity. Some Labor MPs and Jewish leaders believe an announcement could come as early as Thursday.
Most figures advocating for a royal commission believe it must also examine the explosion of antisemitic incidents in Australia following the October 7, 2023, attacks but fear the federal government may open up the terms of reference to examine hate speech, discrimination, terrorism holistically – across race, religion and ethnicity.
Labor sources, speaking on the condition of anonymity, believed any Albanese government backdown was likely to be “super-curated” and “calibrated”.
While discussions were evolving, it’s believed that folding the departmental inquiry to be overseen by Dennis Richardson inquiry into the royal commission was being explored, with the potential for Richardson to become a commissioner.
No decisions have been made and the royal commission’s scope and form remains fluid, sources said, as Labor debates internally how a more ambitious federal inquiry should look.
Another possibility is that the federal and NSW royal commissions are merged.
Mike Kelly, co-convenor of Labor Friends of Israel, said he expected Albanese to bow to calls to hold a royal commission.
“Something has got to give here,” he said. Kelly, a former Labor frontbencher, said he would be comfortable with a broad inquiry examining “hate propaganda” in Australia, but some Jewish leaders want an inquiry focused on antisemitism and the lead-up to the Bondi attacks.
Mike Kelly in Canberra on Monday to petition for a royal commission. Credit: AAPIMAGE
The families’ move comes as a broad civil society campaign – under the banner It’s Time: Royal Commission Now – begins organising survivors, relatives of victims and community leaders to lobby MPs.
Describing itself as a “non-partisan campaign to unite Australians” across faiths and backgrounds, the group has begun gathering endorsements from multicultural and religious organisations and is reaching out to trade associations, women’s groups and other civic bodies to support a royal commission into antisemitism and the Bondi attack.
While the Executive Council of Australian Jewry and the NSW Board of Deputies have not commented since Albanese indicated he was changing his view on a royal commission, both made clear late last month they expected a national inquiry would explicitly address antisemitism.
“It is critical that government and society understand the sources of antisemitism, especially in the last two years, and how Australia arrived at its present position where hatred of one ethnic and religious minority has become so extraordinarily rampant,” they said in a joint statement with other state Jewish groups on December 30.
One person, who spoke anonymously because of the sensitivity of the issues, said Jewish community members wanted a probe of antisemitism and the Bondi shooting to stand alone, and warned there would be community unrest if a royal commission were made about a broader issue.
The president of the Australian Federation of Islamic Councils, Rateb Jneid, said the organisation welcomed any inquiry into the Bondi tragedy that could provide “answers, accountability and healing for those affected”.
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“However, when it comes to examining broader issues like racism and hate, including Islamophobia and antisemitism, this must be handled through a separate, properly scoped process,” he said. “Singling out one form over others risks further division. A serious national conversation about racism must be inclusive, thoughtful and comprehensive.”
Gutnick, who co-ordinated the letter with 14 other families, said their call for a royal commission was “not driven by politics, but by grief, responsibility and a desire to ensure that no other families endure what ours has endured”.
“We believe there is a compelling public interest in ensuring that all contributing factors are properly examined,” she wrote, requesting meetings on February 3 and 4.
A group of 32 former defence, intelligence and security leaders – including ex-governor-general David Hurley, former ASIS chief Paul Symon and nine former defence service chiefs – added to calls for a federal royal commission into both antisemitism and Islamist extremism on Wednesday.
David Baxby, co-founder and partner of Coogee Capital, has launched another public campaign, Bondi Response, with more than 2000 names on their online petition and ads in the nation’s mastheads, including this one.
Federal Agriculture Minister Julie Collins said in Hobart on Wednesday the government would continue to engage and listen to the community.
“Our primary focus has been listening, responding to community and doing swift actions,” she said.
Opposition Leader Sussan Ley said the families of victims must have confidence in any inquiry’s terms of reference.
“The terms of reference must properly address the systemic rise of antisemitism in Australia, and they must include reference to radical Islamic extremism, as well as far-left, neo-Nazi extremism. Victims’ families have been very clear about this. Antisemitism can’t be re-scoped or redefined.”
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