February 23, 2024
TOM ELLIOT: Home Affairs spokesman for the Liberal Party in Canberra. He's a Senator of Victoria. James Paterson, good morning.
JAMES PATERSON: Good morning, Tom.
ELLIOT: So do we know that any of the 2000 plus Palestinians who have come here since October 7th? Do we know whether any of them are actual supporters of terrorism?
PATERSON: Well, unfortunately, there was a very troubling report by Sharri Markson on Sky News last night where she has identified someone who appears to have come to Australia on one of those visas and has expressed support for the 7th October attacks in Israel on social media and appears to be sympathetic to Hamas and its objectives. Now that's what a journalist has found just using what you can find on the internet, on social media. Imagine if our government actually did proper checks on these 2200 visas that they granted? Imagine what they could find.
ELLIOT: So are you saying proper checks aren't being done?
PATERSON: Well, I'm not convinced they are. Based on questions that I asked Home Affairs officials in Senate estimates a couple of weeks ago, where they admitted to me that on average, these visitor visas are granted in 24 hours, and there's even cases where they've been granted as quickly as one hour. Now, how can you possibly do an adequate identity check, let alone a security check on someone in one hour? Remembering that these people are applying from a war zone which has been controlled by a terrorist organisation for 20 years.
ELLIOT: Now, what sort of visas are we giving out? These aren't refugee visas are they, this is just someone who wants to say, from Palestine, "oh I would like to have a holiday in Australia, or maybe a working holiday." or something like that?
PATERSON: They are predominantly tourist visas. And that's the quickest visa that can be issued by the federal government. But the problem with that is, is someone who gets a tourist visa and comes to Australia can then apply for protection or asylum while you're in Australia. And it's very difficult to remove that person because even if they're not found to be a genuine refugee, they have multiple opportunities to appeal through the legal system and can stay here for years and years and years.
ELLIOT: So do we know how many, if any, of these Palestinians who have come here since October 7th, have any of them applied for refugee status?
PATERSON: We don't know how many have applied, but we know there's about 400 who have come to Australia since these visas have been granted. Others have not been able to leave, given the circumstances on the ground in Gaza.
ELLIOT: And given the war there. You have to say that their application for asylum would probably stand a good chance of succeeding.
PATERSON: I think that's highly likely, Tom. It certainly would be very difficult to send anyone back to Gaza in these circumstances and potentially for years, even after the war is over, as a rebuilding process begins.
ELLIOT: Let's just say, you mentioned this I think it's a 21 year old Palestinian man who is living in Melbourne, who Sharri Markson Identified on Sky News, he's liked a whole lot of Hamas posts about the October 7 attacks. Is that enough to have someone deported?
PATERSON: Well, I think the Minister of Home Affairs should be looking very carefully at this visa today and if it meets the criteria, should be cancelling that visa. And then from there the process can follow, which ultimately includes deporting someone. Because the last thing we need in the middle of the worst anti-Semitism crisis in this country in a generation is more supporters of Hamas in our community. I mean, the Jewish community feel so threatened and so unsafe already. I really don't think we'll be aiding social cohesion by having people come here who are supporters of a terrorist organisation.
ELLIOT: That just ordinary Semitism. We came across the speech that now Prime Minister, but then was probably a backbencher back then, Anthony Albanese gave in the late 90s, and it was in reaction to Pauline Hanson's speech and he spoke about multiculturalism and, you know, letting Asian people in. And he also spoke about not wanting to give rise to anti-Semitism. So that was Anthony Albanese back in the 90s. Did you think the federal government's gone a bit quiet on that now?
PATERSON: There's no doubt about it. The Prime Minister has failed the leadership test here. He's provided no moral clarity at all amid this unprecedented anti-Semitism crisis. I have Jews in Melbourne telling me that they're considering leaving Australia because they feel so unsafe, and they say to me that they would feel safer living in Israel, despite the fact it's under attack by three terrorist organisations right now, then they do in Melbourne. That's a travesty. And really, what has the Prime Minister done to combat that? How has he stood up to make sure that is not happening? I think he has failed the leadership test on this, and I think it's a great stain on his government.
ELLIOT: Thank you for your time. James Paterson there, Victorian Liberal Senator, Shadow Home Affairs spokesman.
ENDS
