February 26, 2024
PETA CREDLIN: Joining me now to discuss this worrying escalation. Shadow Home Affairs Minister, Senator James Paterson. Well, this is out-and-out jihadist sentiment, James Paterson, certainly to me. How concerned are you about this?
JAMES PATERSON: Deeply concerned Peta on a number of levels. Firstly, this appears to be another incitement to violence call in the community which has not been punished. No one has been charged at state or federal level under the extensive anti incitement provisions that we have for inciting people to commit violence. I'm deeply worried about that. But secondly, it just shows why councils have no business debating these motions at all. It brings nothing but harm to the community, it divides the community, and it is not their role. If councils want to get involved in foreign policy, they should run for the federal parliament. And my state colleague, David Southwick, had a very good suggestion last week that we should cut the funding of councils that can't stick to their own knitting and stick to their own jobs. When we have some councils in Melbourne, like the City of Yarra, which spends a lot of time debating foreign policy issues but literally cannot manage to pick up the bins each week and there is rubbish littered in the streets on a weekly basis in places like Richmond, because they can't perform their basic functions. Well, frankly, I think the federal government funding that they get should be in question. If they're wasting their time on foreign policy matters where they have no expertise and no business being involved.
CREDLIN: I might add the City of Yarra too, it bills people for their rates, but it also adds loading, an extra payment for people in relation to bins, which is its core business. So I don't know what they put the rest of the budget towards, but it clearly isn't their day job. Last week you copped it from Labor. The left accused you of whipping up Anti-Palestinian sentiment because you were rightly concerned about the number of and pace of visas granted to people out of Gaza. I mean, that footage in Melbourne shows me, and I think it shows Australians why you were right to be concerned. Surely this is going to prompt a rethink about how we assess these applications out of Canberra.
PATERSON: Peta the reason why I asked those questions is that I was very disturbed that such a large number of visas, more than 2200, were being granted in such a short period of time. And I was not convinced, as I know you are, that you could possibly do adequate identity or security checks in that time to verify who these people are and that they don't pose a risk to the community. Now, I expected that one day we would live with the consequences of one of those people brought in from a war zone controlled by a terrorist organisation. I didn't expect to be proven right so quickly. When your colleague Sharri Markson and found a Hamas supporter who has come to Australia and has tweeted their support for the October 7th attacks, already on one of these visas, already from just a small list that she found as a journalist doing some desktop research. Imagine what we would find if our security and intelligence agencies were given the proper time to adequately consider these applicants before they came here. I think you'd find a lot more than just one based on this social media activity alone. So I'm deeply concerned about the government's decision to rush these visas through, and I think, I fear we will be paying the consequences of this for some time.
CREDLIN: And look, I don't think anyone's got any hope that Labor is going to deport that particular individual or look through the social media of others, but talk to me about this Palestinian activist. This activist hijacked two planes, has labelled Hamas as freedom fighters, and they're slated to deliver the keynote address at an eco-socialism event in Perth in June. Now the woman in question, she's 79 years of age. But in 1969, she helped hijack a TWA flight on its way from Rome to Tel Aviv and then just a year later, attempted another hijack of another aircraft. Now, unsurprisingly, James, Jewish groups in Australia are pushing for the government to deny her an entry visa. What are your thoughts?
PATERSON: Well, the Jewish community is right to be concerned, and I think all Australians would be horrified by the prospect that the Albanese government might grant a visa to this person who was convicted of hijacking not one, but two planes, and remains a member today of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, a listed terrorist organisation. Now someone convicted of terrorist offences, someone a member of a terrorist organisation has no business whatsoever coming to this country. And the Albanese government and the Minister for Home Affairs should be able to immediately publicly rule out the prospect that she would be welcome here under any circumstances and say that if she applies for a visa, she will not be welcome because she has been invited by an organisation that's holding a conference in Perth. She could come here if a visa is granted and I don't think that prospect should be allowed to fester for any longer. It needs to be immediately ruled out.
CREDLIN: Have you asked questions or is the coalition pursuing this in Canberra?
PATERSON: We certainly plan to. We asked questions on other hot button immigration issues today, like the NZYQ matter and the two illegal boat arrivals that have made it all the way to the Australian mainland. Unfortunately, it's a target rich environment at the moment, Peta.
CREDLIN: Yeah, I am sorry for our country there James Paterson, thank you for your time as always.
ENDS
