Greens deputy mayor removed after opposing solidarity vote
At an extraordinary council meeting on Thursday the position of deputy mayor was declared vacant
The position of Deputy Mayor Ludovico Fabiano was declared vacant on Thursday night after he was one of two Greens Councillors to vote against a resolution last week condemning Hamas’s “horrific terrorist attack”.
With nearly 100 members of the public in attendance, Councillors voted 10-2 at an extraordinary council meeting (ECM) to end Fabiano’s term in the role and 7-5 to remove him and fellow Greens Councillor Dominic Wy Kanak as voting members of the Traffic Committee and the Audit, Risk and Improvement Committee.
Fabiano was also removed as deputy chair of the Multicultural Advisory Committee and the Strategic Planning and Development Committee, while Wy Kanak was removed as chair of the Finance, Operations and Community Services Committee.
“This was a victory for the Jewish community. We sent a clear message that our voices matter and that the leadership of our community must reflect our values and aspirations,” Liberal Councillor William Nemesh said. “It was entirely appropriate that my Council colleagues supported my motion to remove Cr Fabiano as Deputy Mayor.”
Waverley Mayor Paula Masselos said in a media release, “I call on our community to look forward and come together in unity to support each other during this time of heartbreak for many.
“I would like to thank Councillor Fabiano for the contributions he has made to Waverley during his time as Deputy Mayor. I also acknowledge the important role Councillor Fabiano and Wy Kanak have played as voting members on our various committees.”
Last week’s motion, which the two Greens voted against, also expressed the Council’s sympathy and condolences with the families and friends of the dead and injured and committed $10,000 for Jewish community organisations helping members of the community impacted by the October 7 Hamas attacks.
The motion also condemned the Opera House protest at which protesters chanted “gas the Jews” and said Council would write to Premier Chris Minns “calling on the NSW government to take all steps necessary to ensure the safety of the NSW Jewish community”.
A lone Greens councillor, Elaine Keenan, voted in favour.
Liberal Councillor Leon Goltsman told The AJN last week the community “is hurting”.
“This isn’t just the Jewish community. The people of Waverley are hurting … every single one of us has Jewish family or friends or colleagues,” he said. “We need to send them a message that we are listening, that we understand, that we care.”
He said it was “disgraceful” that two Greens opposed the resolution.
“This motion is a representation of the entire council. It should have been unanimous. And that to have them come along and divide us like that is just terrible.”
He added that Keenan “absolutely” deserves credit for supporting it and that he had reached out to her to show his gratitude.
Australia/Israel & Jewish Affairs Council Director of Public Affairs Walt Secord described Fabiano’s standing down as a “victory for people power” and formally congratulated Nemesh and Labor Councillor Steven Lewis, who moved the motion at the ECM, for their role in stripping him of his responsibilities.
“Councillor Fabiano had lost the support a significant section of the community after he voted last week against a resolution supporting the Jewish community,” Secord, a former NSW state Labor frontbencher, said.
Secord also levelled harsh criticism at the two anti-Zionist Jews who spoke in the public section of Thursday’s meeting. “Sadly, their only involvement in the Jewish community is to attack the Jewish community,” he said. “The anti-Zionist Jews should hang their heads in shame for supporting Clr Fabiano and his colleague, Clr Dominic Wy Kanak, who also voted against the original resolution.”
A change.org petition calling for Fabiano to be stood down garnered more than 2500 signatures.
Fabiano wrote on Facebook last Friday that he had put an amendment to last week’s motion that condemned war crimes perpetrated by Hamas as well as “the war crimes perpetrated by a right-wing Israeli government, including the bombing of Palestinian civilians”.
“Unfortunately, the majority of Waverley Councillors did not support the Greens amendment …
I wish to stress that we did condemn the atrocities of Hamas and we did express our support of the Jewish community.”
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