Victorian Liberal Friends of Israel warning on antisemitism
"Staggered" by fundraising result, says Chairman Danny Lamm
More than 300 people attended a Victorian Liberal Friends of Israel fundraising event at Central Shule in Caulfield on Thursday night, as Liberal candidates highlighted concerns about rising antisemitism and criticised the federal government’s response following the October 7 attacks.
Chairman of Victorian Liberal Friends of Israel, Dr Danny Lamm, said, “I’m very satisfied with the amazing fundraising result. We got big amounts, I was staggered”..
He noted the diverse attendance, explaining,”The people in the group are both Jewish and non-Jewish, it’s a broad church. The greatest percentage is non-Jewish.”
Lamm added, “There’s a common dismay with the way this government has conducted itself, not only in regard to the relationship with an important ally in Israel, but also in its very lacklustre management of the outbreak of antisemitism since October 9, which has been shocking for the Jewish community, but even for the wider community.”
Liberal candidate for Macnamara, Benson Saulo, delivered a pointed critique of the federal government’s response to antisemitism.
“We’ve had nothing but silence by this current government,” Saulo told attendees.
“Voting Labor out will send a very strong signal that you can’t play politics with people’s lives. They can’t abandon a community that has contributed so much to the Australian way of life.”
Saulo emphasised the significance of the upcoming election, stating, “We know that only a Liberal government for Australia will stand with Israel and stand with the Jewish community for many years to come.”
Tim Wilson, Liberal candidate for Goldstein, characterised the upcoming federal election as an “existential crisis” for Australia’s Jewish community, referencing a conversation with a Jewish community member who told him “our safety is on the ballot.”
Wilson shared an anecdote from a recent dinner with Opposition Leader Peter Dutton and mining industry figures in Sydney.
“The entire topic, the entire dinner, was dominated by one issue, which is antisemitism and its corrosion on our national unity, and how much this is destroying our country, and how much it is eating in the social fabric that is already so frayed,” Wilson said.
He emphasised the Liberal Party’s commitment to supporting the Jewish community, stating, “Your fight is our fight together.”
Amelia Hamer, Liberal candidate for Kooyong, shared a personal family connection to the Holocaust, recounting how her great-grandfather helped save a Jewish business associate from Nazi Germany in 1936.
“He went to Germany in 1936 and he looked around the country… he actually wrote a letter to his wife at the time and said, ‘This country is different. There’s going to be a war. And I worry for the fate of the Jewish people here in Germany,'” Hamer told attendees.
She revealed a recent encounter that brought this history full circle.
“The reason I know this story is because a lady came up to me in Hawthorne about two months ago and said to me, ‘Your family, I owe my life to your family,'” Hamer explained, noting the woman was the daughter of the man her great-grandfather had saved.
Connecting her family history to the present, Hamer urged attendees to consider what actions they might take.
“What are the little things that you can do in your life that may be hugely consequential? That may be making it known what your views are on antisemitism in Australia.”
The three Liberal candidates were introduced by Victorian Liberal Senator James Paterson and State MP for Caulfield, David Southwick helped run the evening.
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