‘Mal not happy’: Police text messages reveal neo-Nazi rally fallout

3 months ago 24

Police raised concerns internally about the “optics” of neo-Nazis rallying outside NSW parliament and the impact on the Jewish community more than a week before the National Socialist Network protest, documents reveal.

Texts, emails and briefing notes produced under a parliamentary order also show senior police scrambling after the November 8 protest caught Commissioner Mal Lanyon and Premier Chris Minns unaware.

Documents reveal the lead-up to the November 8 rally and its fallout.

Police had received a notice of intent to hold the protest on October 28, did not oppose it and failed to inform Lanyon, who blamed a communication error. The government has since flagged new laws cracking down on people who display support for Nazi ideology.

The documents reveal Deputy Commissioner Peter Thurtell, who has acknowledged failing to inform Lanyon of the rally plans due to an “oversight”, reporting his boss’s displeasure to a colleague shortly after the rally took place.

“Mal not happy,” Thurtell said in a text message, part of a document tranche first obtained by Nine News. “All my fault and I’ll take responsibility.”

In another message, he refers to a discussion before the rally about who in the police force should approach David Ossip, the head of the NSW Jewish Board of Deputies.

“I did undertake to talk to [Mal Lanyon] about it and I didn’t,” Thurtell wrote.

He added: “We should discuss on Monday what we need to start feeding to [Assistant Commissioner] Scott Whyte’s team every week so that we offload responsibility for this sort of thing and telling every man and their dog what’s happening.”

The documents also show parliamentary security made a last-minute attempt to have the rally moved but were turned down because the request was not made until late on a Friday afternoon and was only directed to a constable.

The security official “did not provide a specific reason for the request, instead indicating that it originated from his superiors”, a police constable wrote to a colleague.

Deputy Police Commissioner Peter Thurtell with Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and Premier Chris Minns last year.

But, given the timing and the “absence of a clear rationale beyond convenience”, the request was turned down, the officer wrote.

“From my experience, I understood that most coordinators had already concluded their duties for the week, and I assessed that the likelihood of the White Australia group accepting a change in location or date the night prior was highly unlikely,” the officer wrote.

Police have faced significant criticism since the made-for social media protest outside Parliament House a fortnight ago. The rally, which lasted about 10 minutes, saw the group shout slogans associated with the Hitler Youth while standing alongside a banner that read “Abolish the Jewish lobby”.

NSN leader Jack Eltis, on behalf of the group’s political brand White Australia, notified NSW Police of their plans on October 28, promising a peaceful protest aimed at Jewish organisations and restrictions on free speech.

Superintendent Darren Newman raised concerns about the “optics” of the National Socialist Network rallying outside parliament.

The documents show police quickly sent the news up the chain of command.

Superintendent Darren Newman, who led a strike force investigating antisemitic incidents this year, emailed colleagues the same day saying “this is an interesting protest theme” and “looks like NSN had legal advice on slogan”.

A day later, Newman wrote: “The optics of White Australia standing outside of NSW Parliament house as neo-Nazi/antisemitic/white supremacist ideology promoting hatred towards Jewish community and Jewish advocacy groups will be a story.”

On October 30, more than a week before the rally, the Terrorism & Security Intelligence Unit filed a briefing note on the protest plans.

Neither NSW Police Commissioner Mal Lanyon nor Premier Chris Minns were notified of the November 8 protest beforehand.

The unit had found no evidence that the NSN in Sydney was “intending to commit acts of planned violence during the protest” but would most likely film it for online content.

“It is likely the Jewish community in NSW may perceive the slogan ‘ABOLISH THE JEWISH LOBBY’ as being antisemitic and will likely express frustration over the protest,” the unit wrote.

Police lawyers concluded that displaying the banner was not an offence.

On Friday, Lanyon said that police had submitted a brief to the NSW Crown Solicitor to advise whether participants in the rally had breached hate speech laws.

The NSW government is still considering the findings of a review of hate speech laws, which it received before the protest but has refused to release publicly.

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