A vote against hate

Hunters Hill Council has adopted a comprehensive local strategy to combat antisemitism.

Councillors unanimously backed the plan at a Council meeting on Monday, March 23, endorsing a framework that formally adopts the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) working definition of antisemitism alongside relevant state and federal laws.

The strategy focuses on prevention and early intervention, with measures centred on community education, awareness-raising programs, partnerships with specialist organisations and closer coordination with state agencies.

Council papers stated the strategy “reflects best-practice approaches adopted by other NSW councils” and provides “a structured and proactive framework for prevention, education and response”.

Councillor Carol Tannous-Sleiman, who moved the motion, said the policy was about setting clear boundaries.

“This policy sends a clear message that hatred has no place in Hunters Hill and that council will not stand by while it takes hold,” she said.

The meeting heard from Sheina Gutnick, the newly appointed Australian public affairs officer for the Combat Antisemitism Movement (CAM).

Gutnick, whose father Reuven Morrison was murdered in the Bondi Beach terror attack in December, told councillors: “This is not complicated. Either we are clear about what we will not accept, or we accept what follows. Hunters Hill Council has chosen clarity, and that matters.”

CAM welcomed the vote, praising the council for adopting a dedicated local strategy.

“By taking this step, Hunters Hill Council affirms that antisemitism has no place in the municipality,” the organisation said.

“Protecting the dignity, safety and rights of Jewish residents, visitors and the broader community is central to social cohesion.”

The move comes amid a marked rise in antisemitism across Australia.

Hunters Hill joins Waverley Council as one of the first NSW municipalities to implement a formal local plan targeting antisemitism.