Palestinian pins ‘disturbing’
“This act has not only politicised a neutral space, but also affected many passengers like me who believe in keeping politics separate from services like air travel,” says Noah Fleiszig.
A PETITION urging Qantas to dismiss crew members who pinned Palestinian flag badges to their uniforms has garnered close to 7000 signatures.
The petition was launched by Noah Fleiszig, who said he felt “deeply disturbed” after several cabin crew members on a Qantas flight from Melbourne to Hobart on December 20 chose to display the flags while on duty.
“This act has not only politicised a neutral space, but also affected many passengers like me who believe in keeping politics separate from services like air travel,” Fleiszig said.
“Qantas, as one of the world’s leading airlines, should uphold its responsibility to provide an unbiased and comfortable environment for all its passengers. It is inappropriate for employees to display political affiliations while serving customers from diverse backgrounds and beliefs.”
Graham Wines, also a member of the Jewish community, has written to Qantas after his grandchildren boarded another flight and were shocked to see some cabin crew members wearing the Palestinian badges.
“We are a family of Jews – not something we have ever had to flag until now,” Wines wrote.
“We know how to recognise those who are for us and those who are against us. Qantas is the latter.”
One of the flight attendants reported by Sky News went on to identify herself as Emma Ale after she reached out to the Facebook group Palestinian Christians in Australia.
“I am a flight attendant who works for Qantas and a strong advocate for Free Palestine,” Ale wrote in the message that the group shared to its public Facebook page.
“My photo is being posted all over Sky News Australia for wearing a Palestinian pin during my shift, I need all the help possible.”
Qantas responded to the incident with a statement reminding all employees that unauthorised badges “can’t be worn by employees and we’ve reinforced this to the crew member involved”.
“We understand there are strong and opposing views on the current conflict, but there is no room for these to be expressed by our employees in the workplace,” the statement read.
“Our priority is creating a safe and respectful environment for our customers and all our people.”
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