My email to the Office of the QLD Premier
19 December 2025
Dear Premier’s Office,
I am writing to request clarification regarding recent media reports in the Gold Coast Bulletin and The Courier-Mail indicating that the Queensland Government intends to “crack down on antisemitism.”
Given the seriousness of the issue and the potential legal, administrative, and civil-liberties implications of any such policy direction, I respectfully request that the Premier’s Office clarify the following points:
1. Definition
What definition of “antisemitism” does the Queensland Government intend to
adopt or rely upon?
o Is a specific definition (for example, the IHRA working definition or any alternative) being used, proposed, or considered?
o If so, is that definition being adopted in full, in part, or with qualifications?
2. Scope and Application
How does the Government distinguish between:
o antisemitism as a form of racial or religious hatred, and
o lawful speech, including academic analysis, historical inquiry, political criticism (including of states or institutions), or religious and theological discourse?
3. Safeguards
What safeguards are proposed to ensure that measures aimed at combating
antisemitism do not inadvertently:
o restrict lawful expression,
o chill academic, journalistic, or religious speech, or
o conflate criticism of political ideologies, states, or institutions with racial or religious hatred?
4. Implementation
Is the proposed “crackdown” intended to operate through:
o legislative change,
o administrative policy,
o law-enforcement guidance, or
o education and community programs?
5. Consultation
Has the Government consulted, or does it intend to consult, a broad range of
stakeholders, including legal experts, civil-liberties bodies, academic
institutions, and affected communities, before finalising any definition or
enforcement approach?
Clarity on these matters is essential to maintaining public confidence that efforts to combat genuine hatred are both effective and consistent with Queensland’s commitments to the rule of law, freedom of expression, and procedural fairness.
Finally, I seek clarification as to whether the Queensland Government’s stated focus on antisemitism is being considered within a broader framework addressing all forms of religious and racial vilification, including Islamophobia and anti-Muslim hatred. This question is especially pertinent in light of today’s reported attack on a mosque in North Brisbane involving swastika graffiti accompanied by simultaneous antisemitic and Islamophobic slurs. Public confidence would be strengthened by confirmation that the Government’s response to hate-motivated conduct is principled, even-handed, and attentive to the interconnected nature of contemporary extremist hostility, rather than selective in scope or application.
I would appreciate a written response outlining the Government’s position.
Yours sincerely,
Wahid Azal
