Prime Minister Anthony Albanese confronts mounting pressure from Australian Jewish leaders demanding consultation rights over the federal royal commission commissioner appointment to investigate the Bondi terror attack, The Australian Financial Review reported.
Virginia Bell, a High Court Justice, has emerged as a potential candidate the government floated to head the inquiry, The Australian Financial Review reported. Albanese softened his stance against a federal investigation following sustained advocacy arguing that a state-level New South Wales royal commission paired with a federal intelligence review proved insufficient.
Despite Bell's unquestionable credentials, several Jewish organizations have commenced lobbying efforts favoring a commissioner they view as more attuned to concerns regarding antisemitism throughout Australia, according to The Australian Financial Review.
Proposed alternatives include James Allsop, former president of the New South Wales Court of Appeal; Robert French, former High Court chief justice; and Michael Lee, a Federal Court justice, The Australian Financial Review reported. Additional candidates suggested include Jack Rush, former Victorian Supreme Court justice and Victorian Bar chairman; Jennifer Westacott, former Business Council of Australia chief executive; and Marcus Solomon, Western Australia Supreme Court judge and Orthodox rabbi, according to The Australian Financial Review.
David Ossip, president of the NSW Jewish Board of Deputies, told The Australian Financial Review that the Jewish community sought to participate in determining the commission's leadership. "After two long years of division in Australia, now is the time to deliver more unity, not less," he stated.
"A consensus on who is chosen to be the royal commissioner should be the minimum requirement. This royal commission, which will examine what led to the worst terrorist attack in our nation's history and the crisis of antisemitism, must have the confidence of the Jewish community." Ossip emphasized, The Australian Financial Review reported.
Josh Frydenberg, former Coalition treasurer and a prominent advocate for federal royal commissions, declared on social media that Albanese "has been told directly by leaders of the Jewish community that they have serious concerns" about Bell's potential appointment, according to The Australian Financial Review.
"After more than two years of unprecedented hate, harassment and violence directed towards the Jewish community, culminating in Australia's deadliest terrorist attack at Bondi Beach it is unthinkable the Prime Minister would choose a commissioner that did not have the total confidence of the Jewish community," Frydenberg posted on X, The Australian Financial Review reported.
Jeremy Leibler, Zionist Federation president, declared: "It's clear now that after the Bondi attack the majority of Australians want a royal commission to get to the truth of what is driving antisemitism in this country," according to The Australian Financial Review.
"Any royal commission must be structured, in terms of the terms of reference and the identity of the commissioner, [in such a way that it] has to have the confidence of the community most affected by the attack, which is the Jewish community, as well as the broader community, in order to achieve its purpose," Leibler stated to The Australian Financial Review. "The prime minister should ensure he has satisfied that before he makes the appointment," Leibler added, according to The Australian Financial Review.
"All I can say is that the government continues to work actively and around the clock on that firm and urgent response that we've delivered since Bondi. We recognise the gravity of the incident and the level of concern that exists, not just in the Jewish community in Australia, but in the wider community as well," Environment Minister Murray Watt stated.
Watt acknowledged that the government recognized "calls from many in the community for a royal commission are sincere," while reiterating post-attack priorities focused on implementing former intelligence chief Dennis Richardson's spy agency review and drafting strengthened hate speech legislation alongside gun law reforms, The Australian Financial Review reported.
Albanese anticipates initiating the federal royal commission imminently, following preliminary indications that he is abandoning his resistance on Tuesday, stating his government remains dedicated to executing "everything required" to safeguard social cohesion, according to The Australian Financial Review.
Robert Gregory from the Australian Jewish Association – an organization excluded from government consultations – characterized any royal commission decision as "only the first step," The Australian Financial Review reported.
"Whether the royal commission has any meaningful impact will depend on its terms of reference and who is appointed to lead it. It must remain tightly focused on antisemitism. I would be deeply concerned by any attempt to dilute the terms by examining extremism or intolerance more generally," Gregory stated to The Australian Financial Review.
Gregory emphasized the Jewish community experienced frustration stemming from the "ongoing failure to recognise the severity of antisemitism in Australia since the October 7 attacks," according to The Australian Financial Review.
Any weakened royal commission would "simply entrench that failure," Gregory argued, advocating for terms of reference encompassing the antisemitism surge across Australia since October 7, 2023, alongside evaluating government response adequacy, The Australian Financial Review reported. "A thorough royal commission will examine the major sources of antisemitism, including the far right, the far left, and antisemitism arising from parts of the Islamic community," Gregory stated.
